Jon Clarke (Publisher & Editor)By Andrew Pearce
POLICE have been called in to investigate a too-good-to-be-true internet sales swindle.
Posing as a UK clothing firm, T & T Textiles and Hoisery offered 400 euros a week for just two hours work.
But the company, based in Manchester, has been left mystified at the adverts placed in a string of Spain’s English-language newspapers.
“I am going straight to the police about this,” explained director Tariq Hafeez.
“I have never advertised this. It is not on.”
The scam relies on victims transferring 90 per cent of the value of a bogus cheque received from so-called clients to the fraudsters.
While the bank transfer takes place immediately, the cheque will bounce over a week later leaving the unsuspecting accomplices out of pocket.
Fortunately a trio of Olive Press readers got in touch about the company.
Web expert Arthur Webster, 64, from Coin, became suspicious after seeing the advert in a number of papers, including the Olive Press.
“These sorts of scams have been going on for years so I contacted T & T in the UK and they immediately put a disclaimer on their website,” said Webster, originally from Grimsby.
“It has been a successful ploy as they always use the names of real, respected companies.”
“They win over people’s trust and, before they know it, they are thousands of euros down and owing the bank a lot of money.”
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This is almost the same scam Olive Press reported some years ago in the hotel trade.
Big booking backed by a large cheque, then they ask for payment of the commission and taxi fares to their “agent” by transfer, then the cheque bounces.
If it looks too good to be true, it is.