Hasselt (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – A 25-year-old man posing as a bank employee has been arrested in Sint-Niklaas after defrauding a 94-year-old woman in Hasselt, in a case that underscores a persistent wave of elderly-targeted fraud across Flanders.
Who was arrested and where?
A 25-year-old suspect from Sint-Niklaas was arrested in connection with a fraud that occurred in Hasselt on a 94-year-old resident after he posed as a bank officer in order to trick the resident. This is after the investigators found a link between Sint-Niklaas and the Hasselt case, although the arrest date has not yet been made public by the officials.
What happened to the 94-year-old victim?
The victim, being a 94-year-old woman in Hasselt, was contacted by the suspect posing as an employee of the bank, a ploy often used to make senior citizens believe that their accounts were at stake and that something had to be done immediately. Although it is unknown how much money was stolen and by what means—cash withdrawal, bank transfer, or giving away cards and codes—the case is in line with other similar cases where scammers make use of the fear of compromising one’s account.
How do fake bank employee scams typically work?
Belgian cases that have happened recently all start with a phone call whereby the caller identifies himself as an employee either of the bank or Card Stop where the victim is accused of “suspicious transactions.” The caller directs the victim not to use his/her card and sends some person to come and take the card, PIN, money, and jewellery or directs the victim to install some remote access software through which the fraud can commit online banking fraud.
As police in multiple zones have stressed,
“Real police officers never come to your home to collect money, bank cards, PINs or jewellery,”
investigators in Mechelen told media after arresting three suspects in a similar case.
What do police and banks say about these scams?
The authorities in Flanders have always been very clear about the fact that actual bank employees and police do not go to anyone’s home to collect cards, codes or cash, and have advised the people to immediately hang up if anything like that happens and contact the official authorities. In the area of Rivierenland, police came out with an order which says, “We never collect our stuff and never ask for bank codes.” This is in line with the warnings that came after fraud cases at Sint-Martens-Latem and Mechelen.
When have similar incidents occurred before?
This arrest followed a number of similar arrests made during 2025-2026, such as the Dutch twentysomethings gang who pretended to work in the banks in order to rob elderly people in Antwerp province, where one of them is now demanding four years in prison and a €4,000 fine.Â
There was also the case of an 81-year-old lady from Mechelen who got tricked after receiving a phone call from a supposed neighbourhood inspector and handing over the valuables to a man who pretended to be a police officer; three suspects in their twenties were subsequently arrested, since they have been identified due to the fact that money was found in other countries. In Sint-Martens-Latem an 84-year-old woman has been robbed for over €9,000 and about ten pieces of jewelry, after receiving a call from a pretend bank and a police visit to “secure her valuables”.
Why are elderly residents repeatedly targeted?
Firstly, elderly people are usually gullible and tend to believe anything that an official figure says. Also, they may not know many things about online banking security features. Moreover, elderly people might live alone and be susceptible to blackmailing. It is the combination of fear of losing their savings and sense of urgency to act now to secure their money that works.
