(SOUTHERN BRUCE COUNTY, ON) – The South Bruce OPP has received complaints on 3 different scams in the past week:
On March 10th, 2012 at 10:04 am, a resident of Huron-Kinloss Township reported receiving 2 calls offering lower interest rates for a mortgage. The calls were immediately disconnected and the attempted scam was reported to police. Anyone interested in negotiating a better mortgage rate is encouraged to contact a reputable business. Don’t give personal information or money to some faceless con artist representing themselves over the phone as a mortgage broker.
On March 9th, 2012 at 12:49 pm, the South Bruce OPP received information on a Publisher’s Clearing House scam attempt from a resident of Huron-Kinloss. Calls had been received from a “Sergeant Black of Goderich Police†wanting to meet at the Walmart store in Goderich to collect a $2.5 million dollar Publisher’s Clearing House cheque for a $150 dollar fee. The Goderich Police Service ended in 1998 when the OPP took over policing responsibilities for the area.
On March 6th, 2012 at 3:51 pm, the South Bruce OPP received a report of a fraud from a resident of Arran-Elderslie Township who became involved with a sweepstakes scam. Different callers, including con artists representing themselves as lawyers and FBI agents, made numerous calls with more “fees†to collect a multi million dollar Australian sweepstakes win. Each request was responded to and money (totalling more than $8,400) was sent to different addresses in Jamaica. The South Bruce OPP is asking area residents to question these types of calls – How can you win a contest that you didn’t enter in the first place?
The South Bruce OPP wants all residents to be cautious of unsolicited phone calls. When you receive a phone call, you are trusting that the caller is sincere and genuinely offering a good or service. Con artists exploit that trust to separate you from your hard earned money. “If it sounds too good to be true, it likely isâ€. Anyone interested in more information on fraud can call the Canadian Anti Fraud Centre at 1 888 495 8501 or check online at http://www.antifraudcentre.ca.