Fraud Alert

(COLLINGWOOD AND THE BLUE MOUNTAINS, ON) Officers from the Collingwood and The Blue Mountains detachment of the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) wish to remind area residents of a common scam that unfortunately has made two victims so far today in Collingwood.

Officers have been called to two separate incidents today in regards to what is referred to as the ’emergency scam’ where victims were contacted by a male posing as a family member requesting money for an emergency situation, in these two cases it was for a motor vehicle collision. The victims subsequently wired money as requested and were defrauded of almost $7000 in total.

If you get such a call and if you think it actually may be a family member calling for help, take the phone number where the caller can be contacted (hospital or police station) and promise to call them back shortly. Ask for the phone number and don’t just trust the digits appearing on your caller ID feature, that number may not be the one they are calling from.

If it is a true emergency they will give you the phone number.

If it’s a scam, the caller will not want to let you off the line and will give you a multitude of excuses on why you shouldn’t hang up.

Immediately contact the home or family of the person that is alleged to have called you and find out if they’re actually where the caller said they are.

Don’t be taken in by the Emergency Scam, notify the Canadian Anti Fraud Centre (formerly Phonebusters) at 1-888-495-8501 or on line at [email protected] if it has happened to you.

For more crime prevention tips visit www.opp.ca or www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca

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