Concerned citizen helps foil bank fraud scam: Huron County OPP
A concerned citizen is being credited by police for foiling an elaborate bank fraud scam involving prepaid Visa credit cards that targeted an elderly Huron County resident earlier this month.
According to a release from Huron County OPP, on March 13 an employee of a local business who expressed concern for an elderly area resident contacted police.
Police attended the elderly person’s residence and explained the concerns that someone may be defrauding them. The resident then told police they were just on the phone with a woman who had been arranging for them to take a taxi to two grocery stores to buy two prepaid Visa gift cards of $1,000 each.
The victim then explained that they had been receiving multiple calls over the previous week from a woman claiming to work for a well-known bank head office in Toronto.
The scammer claimed they had been having issues with bank employees giving out clients’ personal information, and told the victim that the bank would transfer $3,000 into their bank account and requested they purchase prepaid Visa cards in order to help track and catch the suspects.
The scammer then requested the victim’s full name, date of birth and bank account information, which OPP said the victim provided.
Afterwards police said the scammer convinced the victim to take a cab to Goderich and purchase two prepaid Visa gift cards of $1,000 each, to which the victim complied. The scammer then requested they provide the credit card numbers and codes off the back, which the victim provided.
While officers were with the victim at their residence, the scammer then called the victim again. Police listened to the scammer on speakerphone, where the scammer instructed the victim to go to a grocery store in Grand Bend and then another grocery store in Goderich.
The victim was instructed to refrain from telling the cab driver what she was doing, other than purchasing groceries, and was told not to disclose anything of their conversation to other people.
If the grocery store cashier asked the victim if she was being scammed, police said the scammer instructed the victim to reply, “No, the cards are for their grandchildren.”
Police then escorted the victim to her bank. It was discovered the scammer had created an online bank account for the victim and transferred $3,000 from the victim’s line of credit to the victim’s chequing account, making it appear as if they deposited the $3,000 of the banks’ money for the victim for the victim to use in their account.
“As a result of the incident, the victim did lose $2,000, however, thanks to the person who contacted the police, the victim would have lost at least another $3,000, if not more had police not intervened,” OPP said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'A beautiful soul': Funeral held for baby boy killed in wrong-way crash on Highway 401
A funeral was held on Wednesday for a three-month-old boy who died after being involved in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 in Whitby last week.
Police handcuff man trying to enter Drake's Toronto mansion
Toronto police say a man was taken into custody outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion Wednesday afternoon after he tried to gain access to the residence.
Biden says he will stop sending bombs and artillery shells to Israel if they launch major invasion of Rafah
U.S. President Joe Biden said for the first time Wednesday he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel, which he acknowledged have been used to kill civilians in Gaza, if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city of Rafah.
U.S. presidential candidate RFK Jr. had a brain worm, has recovered, campaign says
Independent U.S. presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had a parasite in his brain more than a decade ago, but has fully recovered, his campaign said, after the New York Times reported about the ailment.
Ontario Provincial Police arrest 64 suspects in child sexual exploitation investigation
Ontario Provincial Police say 64 suspects are facing a combined 348 charges in connection with a series of child sexual exploitation investigations that spanned the province.
Pfizer agrees to settle more than 10K lawsuits over Zantac cancer risk: Bloomberg News
Pfizer has agreed to settle more than 10,000 lawsuits about cancer risks related to the now discontinued heartburn drug Zantac, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the deal.
Quebec premier defends new museum on Quebecois nation after Indigenous criticism
Quebec Premier Francois Legault is defending his comments about a new history museum after he was accused by a prominent First Nations group of trying to erase their history.
Blind Sask. boy heading to international braille competition hopes to increase accessibility for visually impaired
A Saskatchewan boy who qualified for an international braille competition in Los Angeles next month hopes he can inspire change in his home province.
'A step forward': New screening criteria for sperm donors takes effect
Canadians looking to grow their families with the assistance of sperm or egg donations should soon have more options for donors as the federal health agency does away with longstanding restrictions criticized as discriminatory.