Police warn of CRA scam targeting locals

NEWS RELEASE
THUNDER BAY POLICE SERVICE
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The Thunder Bay Police Service is warning the public about an apparent spike in phone scams targeting local numbers.

A recent complaint describes the calls as coming from someone claiming to be with the Canada Revenue Agency. In an effort to make the call appear legitimate, the would-be fraudster requests the target confirm their SIN number.

Once the SIN number is provided, the fraudster informs their target that the number has been fraudulently used and is connected to money laundering cases. The target is informed they are at-risk of criminal prosecution.

This tactic is meant to cause a state of panic. When the target is panicking they are less likely to scrutinize the fraudster’s claims.

The target in one case was asked to take out a significant sum of money from a bank machine, bring it to a Bitcoin machine, deposit it and send the fraudster the transaction details. After that the target was asked for gift cards.

The victim became suspicious but the Caller ID from the original call displayed 684-1200, which is the TBPS non-emergency line. As the target’s suspicion grew, the fraudster increased their threats of arrest.

International Students who may be less familiar with Canadian laws and the elderly are particularly vulnerable to this kind of scam. Please take time to speak to those you know who may be more at-risk of being victimized by scams.

Unfortunately the Thunder Bay Police Service is unable to stop these calls from being made. For more information about protecting yourself from such scams please contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (http://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/)