Today, 13 February, Victim Support (VS) announced a new romance scam support service across Sussex, London and Kent which will be delivered by their specialist fraud caseworkers. The support will be delivered in person and online, including one-to-one support sessions, peer support and group work.
Romance fraud is a type of online dating scam where someone uses a fake profile to gain a victim's trust to steal money or personal information.
To be eligible for support for the Victim Support service, the victim must live in Sussex and have been a victim of relationship fraud. This covers romance fraud but also includes other fraud where the development of an ongoing relationship is a feature, such as pensions or investment fraud, doorstep fraud or fraud carried out by a friend or relative.
As Sussex Police & Crime Commissioner, Katy Bourne has a duty to fund high-quality support services across the county for victims and witnesses of crime. Victim Support hold the main contract from her office and funding already pays for two fraud caseworkers who have been in place for over seven years. The caseworkers provide emotional support and practical guidance to victims of fraud and were the first ever within VS nationally. The innovative model has since been rolled out across other areas of the UK.
Current referrals come via Sussex Police’s Operation Signature and are passed to the caseworkers who then offer much-needed help and guidance to victims. The team are looking to expand their referral pathways over the course of the pilot in order to help as many people as possible.
Speaking about the positive news, PCC Katy Bourne said: “I’m delighted that this service has rolled out, not only across Sussex, but to neighbouring counties too. For over seven years I’ve supported two fraud caseworkers through Victim Support who have specialist training to recognise and stop all forms that fraud can take. It was clear to me that we needed to step up the support we could provide to help fraud victims recover and prevent them from being re-targeted.
“Romance fraud can devastate a person’s life if not stopped swiftly, leaving long-lasting financial, emotional and physical damage to its victim. Fraudsters have the capacity to convince their victim that they are loved and cared for, making the transfer of money or information to the perpetrator all-to-easy and leaving heartbreak in their wake. It is fundamental that we have a service in place to offer victims reassurance, care and guidance when they need it most and I am delighted to see this service extended.”
You can find out more about how fraud is being tackled in Sussex on PCC Bourne’s website: SPCC - Tackling fraud in Sussex
