$1.1M lost in just over a month to fraudsters posing as Chinese police: Richmond RCMP
An RCMP patch is seen on the shoulder of a Surrey RCMP Officer in Charge during a news conference in Surrey, B.C., on Friday, April 28, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Mounties in Richmond say more than a million dollars was lost to fraudsters posing as police or government officials in just over a month.
The detachment issued a warning Friday, saying it received seven reports of scammers pretending to be police between March 1 and April 8. While no money was sent in three of the cases, a total of $1.1 million was lost in the other instances.
Police said the fraudsters posed as Chinese police or government officials while targeting their victims.
"These fraudsters can be very convincing. They employ various tactics to trick people including spoofing legitimate phone numbers, or making threats of police action if payment is not made," said Sgt. Dave Au in a news release. "Ultimately, they have one objective, to get your money."
Mounties explained anyone who is asked by someone claiming to be a government official for payment in Bitcoin, Google Play or iTunes gifts cards should hang up and report the incident to police.
It's not just police-related scams locals need to watch out for. Last month, Richmond RCMP said in a warning residents of that city lost more than $16 million in 2023 to "sophisticated online scams combining romance and investment schemes." Known as "pig butchering scams," police said the perpetrators typically spend weeks or months "grooming" their victims, often beginning their interaction "under the guise of a mistaken identity."
"These types of scams continue to surface in our community and unfortunately people continue to fall prey to these fraudsters," Cpl. Adriana O’Malley said in a statement. "These frauds can have a devastating financial and emotional impact on the victims which is why we continue to issue these public warnings in the hope of preventing further victimization."
Anyone who thinks they've been a victim of a scam should contact their local police department and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
With files from CTV News Vancouver's Ian Holliday
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