A retired couple who 'worked hard their whole lives' have been left penniless after cruel fraudsters convinced them to hand over their life savings.
Naresh Shah, 64, and his wife Madhu, 62, took out nearly £190,000 in cash from their Santander account over an eight week period and deposited it into the account of a fraudster who claimed they were eligible for a PPI payout.
The couple from Luton withdrew huge swathes of money in more than 30 transactions, as they were subjected to increasingly threatening phone calls from the con artist. Their harrowing story has now raised fresh fears about bank customers' security, after it was revealed they may never get their money back.
The Shah's told BBC Radio 4's Money Box a man who called himself 'James Sylva' duped them into handing over their money.
The couple took out more than £100,000 in 32 transactions over eight weeks - making 30 cash deposits to the fraudsters totalling nearly £170,000 - often paying the money into the criminal's accounts on the same day. They were told they would be in line for a £5,000 PPI payout.
The Shahs withdrew money from Barclays and Halifax but often used the same Santander branch each time - where they were even greeted by name. They say they have lost all the money they hoped would fund their retirement.
Mrs Shah told BBC Radio 4: 'I felt isolated, I lost everything. I cannot face my family. It's horrible.'
Their 36 year old nephew Niraj also told the show: 'My aunt has worked hard her whole life. They've not had a luxurious life, but I had to sit them down and tell them this was a scam. Their faces just dropped. It made me feel sick to be the one to say that too them.'
Worryingly, Niraj Shah, who is an London based accountant, says the scam is ongoing as the fraudster has not been found - and his aunt and uncle are unlikely to ever get their money back.
Speaking to Mail Online, Mr Shah said: 'I have reported this to the police but they have not yet taken any action, and it has been over a month.
'I don't know how they will ever get their money back. My aunt and uncle do not have the money for court proceedings. This is still a live scam, it is ongoing and he is still phoning them.'
Mr Shah also claims his family were 'let down' by the bank: 'I'm shocked that nothing was ever questioned and escalated by the banks given the frequency, the sheer number, and type of transactions. It's very worrying that the banks do not take any extra care of their vulnerable and elderly customers, I guess it's all about profit to them.
While Santander say they are investigating what happened, they add procedures were followed by bank staff.
