Police officers are investigating more than 100 reports of fraudsters targeting the owners of missing dogs, threatening them with blackmail and violence.
Within hours of distressed owners posting missing pet appeals online, scammers would call them claiming to have found the animals.
The alleged fraudsters then demand money for the dog to supposedly be returned safely.
This year, dog thefts across the UK reached a seven year high, with the equivalent of eight dogs a day being stolen every day.
Police officers are investigating more than 100 reports of fraudsters targeting the owners of missing dogs and threatening them with black mail and violence
The pandemic saw a boom in people buying dogs, with 3.8 million people getting a dog during the pandemic, hiking the price of our beloved pets – and making them a lucrative item for criminals.
Police have been investigating reports of scammers pretending to have found the dogs for more than two years now – with some of the criminals believed to have pocketed hundreds of thousands of pounds.
Victims targeted by the criminals have been left suicidal with one woman receiving a rape threat, The Times reported.
The incidents are believed to allegedly being carried out by the same individual living in Cumbria.
Scammers have threatened to harm and even shoot dogs if owners refused to pay as a scare-mongering technique.
This year, dog thefts across the UK reached a seven year high, with the equivalent of eight dogs a day…
