CORNWALL, Ontario – SD&G OPP issued a warning about lottery scams and prize fraud schemes after a Winchester man was nearly duped by con artists.
Stormont-Dundas-Glengarry detachment officers responded to a report of fraud on Main Street in North Dundas on July 7.
The elderly resident was sent a bank draft from “Blue Cross” with instructions to cash the cheque and return a fee to the requesting agency. The transaction was not completed and police stepped in.
According to OPP stats, lottery scams and other prize frauds now rank second highest in terms of the number of mass marketing fraud complaints, and fourth in terms of dollar losses reported by victims.
In 2014, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) received 4,400 Canadian complaints of prize or lottery fraud. Of those, 652 people were victimized to the tune of more than $4.3-million. Police believe 95 per cent of victims never report the crime.
If you have been approached to pay a fee to claim a lottery or other type of prize, contact your local police service or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or online at www.tipsubmit.com.
SD&G OPP tips on how to spot a con:
Never send money to anybody you don’t know and trust.
Don’t provide personal banking details to anyone that you do not know and trust.
Examine all of the terms and conditions of any offer very carefully.
Claims of free or very cheap offers often have hidden costs.
Calls to premium rate phone numbers or premium text messages can be very expensive.
Ask yourself, “Did I willingly enter this contest?”
