A man falsely posing as a Chester detective has been jailed after scamming an elderly woman out of thousands of pounds.

Sharmarke Ahmed, of Maysoule Road, London, appeared at Chester Crown Court on Thursday 23 October.

The 34-year-old was sentenced to 28 months for his role in the scam which occurred in the Malpas area of Cheshire.

He had previously pleaded guilty to one count of handling stolen goods.

On 5 March 2025, the victim in this case – a woman in her 90s – received a call to her landline from a man who posed as a detective from Chester.

The man told the victim there had been criminals operating in her area and if she had any cash or jewellery at home, he would arrange for a 'police officer' to come and collect it to keep it safe.

The victim explained she had £11,000 in cash and various items of jewellery, valued at £16,000.

The phone call lasted for many hours, during which a password was set up, so the victim knew the man who was coming to collect the items was 'genuine'.

The 'police officer', later identified as Ahmed, attended the victim's address, gave the password and collected her money and jewellery.

Later that evening, the victim's friend reported the incident to police.

Police also received further calls in relation to courier frauds in the area between 5 March and 7 March.

The phone number which had contacted the victim was withheld, however checks revealed it was a prepay number that only became live on the day of the phone call and was traced back to the Brixton area of London.

Further analysis revealed the phone the number was attributed to travelled from London to Malpas on 5 March 2025.

Ahmed was pictured on CCTV, collecting the victim's cash and jewellery, and matching the description of a man seen on footage at Chester Bus Station later that evening, who departed on a coach heading back to London.

Following a number of enquiries, officers from the MET Police arrested Ahmed in London on Tuesday 1 April.

He was subsequently charged in relation to the courier fraud.

Detective Constable Niall Dudley said: "Anyone can fall victim to courier fraud and sadly we have seen many incidents of this nature in the Cheshire area.

"We all react very differently under duress, and this is what these despicable criminals take advantage of.

"I am grateful that Ahmed has been jailed for his role in such an awful scam, targeting a vulnerable individual and preying on their good nature.

"But he underestimated the dedication of our officers in locating him, tracing him all the way to London where he was ultimately arrested."

He continued: "Ahmed was just one piece of the puzzle and our fight against this type of crime is not over.

"If you believe that you have been a victim of courier fraud, please contact Cheshire Police on 101, using a different phone to the one used to communicate with the fraudsters. You can also report information to us via cheshire.police.uk/tell-us.

"You can report to Action Fraud via actionfraud.police.uk or call 0300 123 2040.

"Call 999 immediately in an emergency or if you suspect a fraud is currently in progress. Do not wait to report the fraud to police. The quicker police are told, the more likely officers can identify those responsible."

Please see some crime prevention advice: 

• Be sceptical of unexpected calls, texts or visits, even from those who claim to be police officers or bank officials. The police or your bank would NEVER ask you to withdraw cash or hand over items, for any reason.
• Don't be afraid to stop the conversation with a brief 'no, thank you'.
• Never give personal information, such as your date of birth or bank details, to unexpected callers.
• Remember, criminals will use urgency or threats to cause panic and fear. When you are under stress you are less likely to think clearly about your actions.
• If callers suggest you call your local police or bank to check who they are, use another phone or hang up and ensure the line has been fully disconnected by phoning a friend or relative first, or by waiting at least five minutes. Otherwise, you may think you've phoned a number, but you're simply talking to the fraudsters again. This is a common tactic used by fraudsters.
• If a caller asks you to type your bank PIN number into your telephone handset - do not do this, as fraudsters can use technology to identify the numbers.
• You can opt out of many cold calls by registering for free with the Telephone Preference Service on 0845 070 0707.