CORNWALL, Ontario – Cornwall police have received a slew of complaints after scammers tried bilking city residents for unpaid taxes this week.
Things seemed to take off Wednesday when culprits posing as Canada Revenue Agency officials began plaguing the city with calls, threatening legal action if the unpaid taxes were not addressed.
Of course many individuals don’t have a balance owing the federal government, but Cornwall police Const. Dan Cloutier said many people can get sucked in.
“Our dispatch got 10 (complaints) within half an hour,” he said. “How many calls were unreported? It’s been going on for a while, but they’re opportunists because of the time of year.”
The deadline to file your tax return is the end of the month.
Some people have received numerous phone calls from scammers, and some have even been told police will be called if money isn’t transferred immediately.
Cloutier said police don’t get involved in enforcing CRA collections, and added the Canada Revenue Agency notifies individuals by mail when there are problems.
He said the best thing to do is ignore the phone call and alert police.
