$100,000 stolen in taxi fare scam: London police

London police are warning the public about a scam involving a taxi and a person claiming to need help paying the fare.

Several victims throughout the city have reported being approached by a suspect asking for help paying for a taxi, says 
the London Police Service Financial Crime Unit.

In each instance, the suspect was in or near a vehicle that looked like a taxi and asked the victim for assistance paying the fare because the taxi driver would not accept cash due to COVID-19, with a promise to repay them in cash, police said.

The victim is then given a debit machine to pay the fare using their debit card.

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Police say the victims later learned large sums of money were stolen removed from their accounts, and that the debit card returned to them was not theirs but a lookalike.

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The suspects involved in this complex scam are described as a male, aged 18 to 20, wearing a puffy jacket, Timberland boots, and black hat. The second suspect, also male, is around 40 years-old in all black clothing, a black hat, and wearing a medical mask.

The vehicle being used in the scam is described as a 4-door sedan with a fake taxi sign on the roof.

The vehicle is believed to be a 2014 Silver Nissan Altima, police said.

Police report that individual victims have been defrauded of $1,100 to $13,000, totalling approximately $100,000 altogether.

Members of the London Police Service Financial Crime Unit are interested in speaking with anyone who may have information related to this string of frauds.