A 70-year-old man in Cork city has been robbed of his life savings by a thief who pretended to be a member of An Garda Síochána.
A man approached the victim outside his home on Sun Valley Drive in Fairhill just before 7am yesterday morning and asked him if he had any money in the house.
He identified himself as a Garda from the local Gurranabraher station and said he was concerned about pensioner security.
The elderly man brought him into his home and showed him an envelope containing what Gardaí described as a ‘considerable amount’ of money.
The man had recently withdrawn the money from a financial institution because of concerns about the economy.
The robber then grabbed the envelope and ran off. The pensioner was not injured during the incident but is said to be in a state of shock.
Garda Superintendent Con Cadogan has appealed to the public for help in catching the robber; who is described as being in his late 20s, of stocky build and wearing jeans and a green jacket.
Superintendent Cadogan also warned householders to be vigilant about checking the true credentials of people calling to their front door.
