Recently, Meadow Lake RCMP has seen an increase in the number of fraud and scam calls to people in the Meadow Lake area.

The fraudsters are calling and asking people to make payments over the phone by purchasing gift cards to make these payments. The fraudsters may impose as a police officer, ask for personal information, and advise that they will freeze the assets of the person they’re phoning if the payments aren’t made. Once the cards have been purchased, the victim is asked to share the code on the back of the card, which gives the fraudster access to all the funds added to the card.

Constable Gill Harris of Meadow Lake RCMP “due to the increase in the number of reports our Detachment is receiving, we felt it important to remind the community that government agencies and legitimate businesses will not call and ask you to purchase a gift card in order to pay a bill, collect a debt or unlock your government ID,” and “anyone can become a victim – you are not alone. Fraudsters can be very convincing and relentless in their goal of taking your hard-earned money. Reporting you are a victim of fraud helps the Detachment have a better understanding of the types of crime occurring in our community.”

If you receive a phone call you believe you are a victim of fraud, you can report it to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. You can report by phone (Toll free: 1-888-495-8501) or online here: https://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/report-signalez-eng.htm

This article was originally sourced by www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca.