An Austrian court has sentenced a 25-year-old woman who posed as a police officer, helping an organized criminal group steal large sums of cash and valuables from elderly victims. According to Austrian media, damages exceeded €230,000, with the defendant herself estimating the amount at around a quarter of a million euros.
The harshest blow fell on an approximately 80-year-old woman from Reith near Kitzbühel, who, according to the court, lost more than €215,000 in three separate incidents.
Fraudsters told seniors their money was at risk
The scam followed the well-known “fake police” tactic.
Seniors would receive phone calls from someone warning them that their money or valuables were at risk due to criminal activity and that they needed to hand these over to the police for safekeeping.
The 25-year-old woman then acted as the group’s courier, collecting the cash and valuables, as established by the court.
In most cases, she never met the victims in person. According to media reports, the seniors would leave the money outside their homes or at a predetermined hiding spot.
Similar scams have also been reported in Slovakia. Aktualizované.sk recently highlighted a case where fraudsters posed as high-ranking police officers and used the names of real officials.
She visited one victim three times
The financial loss suffered by the elderly woman in Reith near Kitzbühel was particularly severe.
Austrian media report that in July 2025, the perpetrators took more than €215,000 from her in total.
The gang obtained the money over the course of three separate encounters.
The accused told the court she saw the victim in person only once. The other times, the money and valuables had been left for her at locations specified by other members of the group.
Another €18,400 taken in Vorarlberg
The scam continued into this year.
In February 2026, the 25-year-old collected a further €18,400 in Vorarlberg using the same method.
Investigators believe she was not the mastermind behind the operation.
She told the court she was contacted via social media by a man from Bulgaria, who then gave her detailed instructions by phone.
She reportedly received €16,000 for her participation.
Said she acted out of debt
In court, she claimed she got involved in the fraud due to financial problems and debt.
She confessed during the trial and, according to media reports, expressed remorse for her actions.
Her defense lawyer argued she was only a minor part of a wider network and the main organizers should be held more accountable.
The court nevertheless found her role to be a serious offense as part of a criminal group.
Alert retiree in Innsbruck exposed the scam
The entire operation began to unravel after one senior in Innsbruck became suspicious.
Instead of handing over his money, he contacted the actual police.
This step helped investigators track down the woman who was collecting the money.
Austrian police have recorded several similar cases recently. In early September, for example, an 87-year-old man in Upper Austria lost nearly €30,000 in cash and gold after a phone call from fake police officers.
Court sentenced her to two years in prison
The Innsbruck Regional Court sentenced the 25-year-old woman to 24 months in prison.
Of this, eight months must be served unconditionally.
Having already spent seven months in pretrial detention, she was conditionally released after the trial, according to Krone.
Aktualizované.sk has also reported a case in which a community near Žilina in Slovakia lost €77,000 in a similar police impersonation scam.
Fake police scams prey on fear
A hallmark of these cases is the creation of a sense of urgency.
The caller tells the victim their money is threatened, that police are investigating thieves, or stresses the need to “secure” assets immediately.
Genuine police, however, never ask people to leave money outside their homes, hand over cash to strangers, or reveal login information.
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The case also shows that roles in such criminal networks are divided, from phone callers and organizers to those who physically collect the money.
According to available information, investigations are ongoing into higher-ranking members of the group, and the main organizers have not yet faced trial.
This article was translated from the original Slovak version with the assistance of AI.
