A POLICE officer has been praised after intercepting a package containing more than £2,000 which had been sent by a woman who was being scammed by fraudsters pretending to be tax officers.

The victim, who is from Evenwood, was called on Wednesday by a man claiming to be a police officer for HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC), who told her there was an arrest warrant out for her regarding an outstanding tax bill.

She was then told to send cash to an address in London – or face being arrested.

She followed his instructions, sending more than £2,000 of her holiday savings to the address given to her.

Then wondering whether she had been scammed, she called police.

PC Lorraine Nelson, from Bishop Auckland’s response team, visited the distressed victim and after several hours was able to trace the package to a distribution centre in Gateshead, where she was able to intercept it and recover the money.

PC Nelson said: “I ended up doing a 14 hour shift but it was worth every minute knowing we’d prevented the scammers from getting the lady’s holiday savings.”

A police spokesperson said: “We want to take this opportunity to remind people that genuine police officers or HMRC would never contact you requesting cash in this way.

“Only give out your personal or financial details to use a service that you have given your consent to, that you trust and that you are expecting to be contacting by.

“Never assume that a phone call is authentic, and if you’re unsure, always hang up straight away.”

Anyone who thinks they have been a victim of fraud should call 0300 123 2040 or if someone is in immediate danger, call 999.