South Yorkshire Police has warned the public about a telephone scam in which fraudsters pose as officers and claim arrest warrants have been issued against victims. The callers pressure targets to purchase gift cards to prevent arrest, though genuine police officers never request financial payments or gift cards. Police have emphasized they contact the public only for legitimate purposes such as crime reporting or investigation.

Nationally, 35 cases have been reported with financial losses ranging from hundreds to thousands of pounds. Scammers employ tactics including false claims of compromised bank accounts or national insurance numbers, threats of deportation or arrest, spoofed phone numbers, and messaging apps such as WhatsApp. Authorities advise those receiving such calls to hang up, wait 20 minutes before reporting (to clear spoofed connections), contact their bank, and report the incident to police or the Report Fraud service.