Police are investigating a new complaint for online fraud, after a woman in Paphos reported that she had been conned out of €15,000 after accepting a friendship request by a stranger on social media.
The person had sent the request two years ago and had introduced herself as a woman living in a European country.
They began exchanging messages and the stranger told the Paphos woman that she had been taken seriously ill and would be naming her as her heir for €60,000.
She asked the woman to send her a photograph of her ID card and her telephone number.
A few months later, their communication suddenly stopped.
Soon afterwards, various strangers started contacting the woman, posing as lawyers of the supposed dead friend and requested fees to arrange the inheritance.
Since 2023, the woman in Paphos sent a total of around €15,000 to the strangers, before realising she had been a victim of fraud and reported the case to the police.
The police call on the public to be cautious in all online dealings.
