A 48-year-old man in Limassol was scammed out of €178,500 which he thought was used to buy a car, police said on Friday.
The man reported to he reached a deal with a car sales company to buy a new vehicle. After everything had been agreed, he received an email where the company in question appeared to be the sender.
It claimed the company’s bank account had allegedly been changed and asked him to settle the invoice by making two transfers to a new bank account.
The 48-year-old went ahead and sent €89,250 on June 6 and 7 to the new bank account.
When he had a phone call with the company, he discovered he had been the victim of fraud, after being informed that the company had never sent him such an email.
The Financial Crime Investigation Bureau of Limassol CID is investigating the case.
Police urged the public to be extremely cautious of such emails, and first call the company to confirm before making any payments.
