On Saturday 13 August 2016 the Owen Sound Police received a call from a local businessman in regards to a fraud. The complainant indicated that he had been defrauded out of $55000.
The complainant responded to what he believed was an e-mail from a legitimate business looking for someone to work in the area on their behalf. The complainant later spoke to a male who again seemed legitimate and who worked for a multinational company overseas. This male spun a web of lies using names of legitimate companies to assist him in the ruse. The complainant was hired to assist the company in collecting monies owed from their clients in this area.
At some point the complainant received a cheque from one of the clients which he deposited in his business account. Once he was notified that the cheque had cleared he sent $55000 back to the company that he was supposedly working for after subtracting his commission. The following day the complainant learned that the cheque was fraudulent which resulted in his account being debited in the amount of $55000. The financial institution attempted to reverse the money transfer but will have to wait a few days to see if they were successful.
The Owen Sound Police want to remind the public to always be on guard for potential frauds. We are inundated on a daily basis with fraudulent calls and e-mails most of which you can recognize if you do your due diligence.
If you want to check and see if the caller or e-mail sender are legitimate, look the company up on the computer. Call the company using the number(s) found in the company ad you located on the computer and do not use the number you have been provided by the caller. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is.
There are numerous variations of the same fraud. The common factor being that the victim receives a cheque which is deposited into their personal account. The cheque balance less commission and other fees is then sent onto another location. This money, in almost every case, is lost as it will have been sent somewhere overseas. So if you are asked to do this, don’t.