Elderly woman handed £2,600 of pension money to fraudsters, court told

Details emerged as bail was refused to a man accused of being part of an organised crime gang which has targeted dozens of pensioners.

District Judge Ted Magill said: "They are despicable offences."

John Delaney (44), of Hazel View in Belfast, was allegedly involved in defrauding two women in Belfast on May 7 this year.

He denies two counts of fraud by pretending to be a policeman and two counts of conspiracy to commit fraud by false representation.

Belfast Magistrates Court was told the case is connected to a year-long probe into a series of scams against vulnerable members of the public.

An Economic Crime Unit detective said there have been a total of 320 incidents involving 36 victims across Northern Ireland.

She disclosed that a total of £130,000 in cash and £20,000 worth of jewellery has been lost.

Those behind the scam contacted people aged in their eighties and nineties, claiming to be police officers and persuading them to hand over money to assist with investigations into crime.

Some victims were told their houses are being watched and cash needed to be taken for safekeeping, according to detectives.

Others were informed checks had to be carried out on their money to rule it out from a fictitious inquiry into fraud.

Delaney is accused of one incident in the Stewartstown Road area, where a woman was said to be questioned about her home security.

On disclosing that she had saved £2,600 from her pension since the start of the Covid-19 lockdown, the money was handed over to someone who called to collect it.

In a separate alleged incident on the same day, a woman aged 79 was targeted at York Road.

A telephone caller pretending to be a police officer from the serious fraud squad told her that she was going to be robbed, the court heard.

She agreed to leave £2,500 in her garden, with the money then collected.

Delaney is allegedly linked to the incidents by CCTV footage and taxi records.

Defence lawyer, Diarmaid Kelly, stressed that his client only faces charges in connection with a "small percentage" of the wider suspected scams.

Based on the prosecution case, the solicitor argued: "He's more of a 'gofer', he's not the intelligence or brains behind this."

However, Mr Magill ruled that Delaney must remain in custody due to the risk of re-offending.

The judge pointed out: "It is said that he's part of an organised criminal gang targeting the elderly and vulnerable."