Oxford Resident Out Cash With OPP Impersonator Scam

Tuesday, 22 October 2019 at 10:18

A person in Oxford County is out some cash today after falling victim to a scam, where the caller pretended to be an OPP officer and told them a warrant had been issued for their arrest.

OXFORD COUNTY - Several residents in Oxford County have been getting calls from scammers, pretending to be OPP officers.

The caller identifies himself as an officer and then asks for banking information and your social insurance number. OPP are reminding everyone that they would never ask for any type of information over the phone.

In this recent case the scammer told the victim that a warrant was out for their arrest for financial related crimes and that they needed to pay a large sum of money in order to clear the charges. Unfortunately in this case, the victim transferred the money.

The OPP is urging community members to be vigilant when requested to send money or gift cards to anyone that you do not know. Residents should hang up when anyone calls claiming to be a police officer who is seeking personal information. Service Canada and Canada Revenue Agency employees will not contact you by telephone to solicit funds in any manner.

To learn about ways to protect yourself from scams and frauds, the OPP encourages community members to consult the Competition Bureau Canada, The Little Black Book of Scams, which can be found online here.

If you are the recipient of a fraudulent call, text or email, or if you've been a victim of a fraud, you are encouraged to report the incident to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre by calling 1-888-495-8501 or visit the anti fraud centre online here.

OPP are asking the public for their assistance in this investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Oxford County OPP at 1-888-310-1122.

Should you wish to remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or www.oxfordcrimestoppers.com where you could be eligible for a reward of up to $2000.

#OxfordOPP remind residents about phone scams. If you receive a call that sounds suspicious, just hang up. #OPP and government agencies will not solicit SIN numbers over the phone. Contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Center 1-888-495-8501 or the OPP 1-888-310-122 ^pc pic.twitter.com/9pGEXm6JjW
— OPP West (@OPP_WR) October 22, 2019