(MUNICIPALITY OF WEST PERTH, ON) – The Perth County Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) is currently investigating a fraud that occurred last week involving a Municipality of West Perth resident who was the victim of a Green Card Lottery scam defrauding her out of $8,000.
(The Green Card Lottery is a legitimate congressionally mandated diversity visa program which makes visas available to persons from countries with historically low rates of immigration into the USA (Canada has high numbers of immigrants). The program makes a limited number of visas available to persons meeting certain eligibility requirements and they are randomly chosen like a lottery. Persons can apply for the Green Card Lottery by going to the Dept. of State web site which explains that there is no fee to apply).
The US Department of State website specifically warns the public that there is a notable increase in fraudulent emails and letters sent to Diversity Visa (DV) program (Visa Lottery) applicants. The scammers behind these fraudulent emails and letters are posing as the U.S. government in an attempt to extract payment from DV applicants. The U.S. government will never ask you to send payment in advance by check, money order, or wire transfer.
Remember, fraudsters will invest time and energy to gain the trust of unsuspecting victims in order to steal their money.
Don’t be a victim! Here are some quick ways to avoid being victimized.
Be suspicious and always verify who you are speaking with, do your research.
If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Be careful of suspects working overseas, as this provides numerous reasons for them to ask for money.
If you are asked to send money to receive money, don’t do it. It will likely result in financial loss.
Anyone interested in more information on Fraud can call the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1 888 495 8501 or online at http://www.antifraudcentre.ca
The Perth County OPP is requesting anyone with information about frauds and crimes to contact them at 1-888-310-1122. Should you wish to remain anonymous, you can call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) where you may be eligible to receive a cash reward of up to $2,000.