POLICE are warning residents not to fall victim to scammers targeting households to extort cash.

Several people in the Harrogate area have reported receiving calls from a ‘DC Mason Greenwood’ claiming to be from West Yorkshire Police or the Metropolitan Police.

The scammer tells the individual their nephew or grandson is in custody and that this relative has the individual’s bank cards with them as well as other stolen bank cards.

Fortunately, the residents who have reported this to North Yorkshire Police have identified this as a scam and terminated the call before giving any bank details or financial information.

North Yorkshire Police have received reports of 12 incidents in the past week and enquiries are ongoing to identify the caller.

North Yorkshire Police officer, Andy Fox, said: “This is yet another example of a scam call designed to obtain full bank account details from an unsuspecting victim.

“Remember, the police will never ask you for your account details over the phone and if you are in any doubt about who you are speaking to, terminate the call immediately and call 101 from a different phone. This is because the scammers may tell you to call the police but they keep the line open so when you think you are speaking to the police you are actually still taking to the scammer."