A TASK force aimed at cracking down on fraudsters has prevent more than £1 million making its way to scammers.

Officers from the West Yorkshire Financial Exploitation and Abuse Team intercepted a so-called ‘suckers list’ of vulnerable people targeted by scammers.

The list had the names and addresses of more than 5,000 vulnerable people in the county.

Officers have worked individually with people to give them guidance and support on how to spot scam mail and to prevent them from falling victim in the future.

As a result, many people have stopped responding to scammers, saving more than £1 million.

Victims identified included a 70-year-old who lost £200,000 responding to scam mail for 16 years, and a person who lost £100,000 of life savings in three years.

Officers, from Trading Standards, have also trained 2,300 frontline professionals to spot and stop scams.

Linda Davis, head of the WYFEAT task force, said: “Many scam victims we meet feel lonely or isolated, and initially they respond to the scam mail for company.

“This quickly escalates into them being inundated with masses of scam mail repeatedly asking for money, and very often the fraudster then moves on to harassing them by telephone.

“The team works with victims and potential victims to help them say ‘No’, and often, once they stop responding, over a short period of time, the scam mail stops.”

To report scams, call the Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 03454 040506.