A CLYDEBANK man was conned out of £7,800 after receiving a call from someone claiming to work at his bank.

The caller told the 60-year-old a problem had arisen with his account and funds needed to be transferred to a temporary account until the issue was resolved.

The victim then transferred money to the account provided by the caller.

Also last week, a Dumbarton pensioner was swindled out of around £2,000 in a telephone tax scam.

The 78-year-old received a phone call with a recorded message claiming to be from HMRC, asking them to call a number to discuss a tax matter.

On calling the number, the victim spoke with someone claiming to be an official of HMRC, who informed him an audit had identified a shortfall in tax payments which needed to be corrected immediately, pending court action.

The victim paid £2,000 in bank transfers and by pre-paid vouchers over the phone and via his bank.

Police Scotland have confirmed both of these incidents as scams, reminding members of the public to be vigilant of such calls.

The news comes as figures obtained by the Post via a Freedom of Information request revealed more than 200 fraud crimes were reported in the area in the two years between June 2015 and June 2017.

Police Scotland confirmed around 100 people had been charged in relation to the reported crimes over the two-year period.

Between June 1, 2016, and June 2017 there were 103 fraud crimes recorded in West Dunbartonshire, with 13 of the victims 65 or over.

The crimes were recorded in Clydebank Central 22, Clydebank Waterfront 20, Dumbarton 20 and Kilpatrick four. Of these 103 recorded incidents, 58 people were charged.

Between June 1, 2015, and 2016 there were 113 recorded frauds in West Dunbartonshire, with 13 victims again aged 65 or over.

The crimes were recorded in Clydebank Central 26, Clydebank Waterfront 16 and Kilpatrick nine, with 47 people charged.