Attention, highway gold! Police warn of brazen fraudsters in Hesse

Attention, highway gold! Police warn of brazen fraudsters in Hesse

A worrying phenomenon on Hesse's highways is gaining increasing attention: the fraud scam known as “Autobahngold” is putting more and more drivers in an unpleasant position. The police are now urgently warning about con artists, who often only give their victims a short moment to give the impression that they are getting a good deal. As hessenschau.de reports, fraudsters often wave drivers near rest stops by pretending to be in an emergency situation.

The typical scenario goes like this: A driver stops to help and learns that the man he's talking to is out of gas and in urgent need of cash. In exchange for quick amounts of money, fraudsters offer supposedly valuable gold items such as rings or chains. This scam turned out to be particularly perfidious because the “gold pieces” often turn out to be worthless dummies. According to information from RPR1, more and more drivers are reporting similar experiences.

Press reports and arrests

Police have increasingly highlighted this fraud in recent weeks as the cases increase in both frequency and audacity. Four suspects, including two men and two women between the ages of 26 and 38, were recently arrested on the A5 near Heppenheim. During a search of her vehicle, 19 gold chains, 99 gold rings and a pair of earrings were recovered, which were later found to be fakes. hessenschau.de reports that the fraudsters often come from Eastern Europe and the car has foreign license plates.

The scam becomes particularly bold when the fraudsters have a crying or screaming child in the vehicle - a targeted means of arousing the pity of those willing to help. It is alarming that many victims do not report fraud cases out of shame or the belief that they have gotten a good deal from the counterfeits. However, according to BKA it is noted that only 20 percent of all fraud crimes are reported, although the actual number of unreported cases is much higher.

Prevention and behavioral tips

The Hesse police appeal to drivers to be particularly vigilant. The police should always be involved when offering gold jewelry or similar barter transactions on motorways. The risks are high and the value of such pieces of jewelry is often not recognizable to laypeople. If you are seriously interested in gold or silver, you should only do so from trustworthy dealers. Highways are by no means the right place for such business.

In summary, fraud on German motorways represents a serious risk. As the figures from the BKA show, there has been a decline in other fraud crimes, but the danger from committed con artists on the streets still remains. Drivers should therefore always show good judgment and listen to their gut feeling when they are made an offer like “motorway gold”.