A local man was scammed out of thousands of dollars after having his identity stolen — one of two complaints of fraud police received over the holiday season.
“He’s not sure where it happened, but he was out several thousand dollars,” RCMP Const. Tracy Dunsmore told the Herald, adding that police are not sure exactly how much money was stolen.
It appears as though someone accessed the man’s Visa account, and changed his address and other information in order to access his banking account, Dunsmore said.
She told the Herald the man contacted his bank and is in the process of getting his money back.
Police also received a complaint over the holidays from a person who purchased an item through Kijiji but never received the item, which was purchased via e-transfer from out of town.
Dunsmore said it’s believed the item was never sent.
“They wouldn’t send a tracking number,” she said. “Sometimes people will post things on there and try and sell it and it’s hard to trace back to where you purchased it from or prove that they never sent the item.”
On Kijiji’s website, it states the best way to avoid being scammed is to set up face-to-face transactions.
The RCMP is warning the public to be wary when it comes to online purchases and emails.
“Be aware of where you’re buying from, where you’re using your ID,” said Dunsmore. “Lots of surveys come out online asking you to provide personal information,” she said, adding that even emails that appear to be coming from a source such as your bank should be deleted if asking for that information.
Read the original story over at the Merritt Herald.
