Warning over charity scammers targeting kind-hearted shop owners at Kirkintilloch town centre

Police have received a complaint over charity scammers targeting shops and businesses in Kirkintilloch town centre.

A warning has gone out on social media regarding two young women pretending to be taking part in a sponsored run for Alzheimer’s Scotland.

One local business owner whose elderly relative has the diseases, handed over cash, before discovering he had been conned.

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He posted on a community Facebook page yesterday (Wednesday, October 30): “I noticed on their forms that our neighbouring businesses had ‘donated’.

But he said when he spoke to his neighbours they said they hadn’t seen or heard of them.”

He said he caught up with the scammers and demanded his £10 donation back.

He posted: “They flung it back at me on the street and swore at me.”

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He added: “I’m disgusted for many reasons, one being my gran suffers from this illness and the fact that it’s daylight robbery, preying on the good nature of good people.”

The scammers have been described as white, both with long hair, one sandy brown, one dark brown, both wearing thick framed glasses, short in height and slim in build.

They both carried printed forms and clipboards.

Other local stores and businesses responded to his post on social media that they too had been targeted.

A police spokesperson at Kirkintilloch told the Herald they had received a complaint regarding the scammers.

They urged people to always be wary of cold charity callers looking for donations and to make sure they have the proper ID before handing over any money.