Vancouver police warn Chinese community after $6M lost to scams this year

An elderly woman shops for dried goods at a store in Chinatown, in Vancouver, on Wednesday, January 27, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

More than two dozen Vancouver residents have lost nearly $6 million to scams targeting the city's Chinese community, with some victims sending money to overseas banks after receiving phone calls from fraudsters impersonating Chinese police officers, according to authorities.

The Vancouver Police Department says financial crime detectives are investigating 26 cases in which Chinese residents were defrauded of thousands of dollars since the start of the year, saying there are likely more victims who have yet to come forward.

Investigators say all of the victims have fallen prey to three specific types of financial scams.

The first scam involves a phone call from a spoofed phone number in which the caller claims to be a Chinese police officer. The caller tells the victim they are in trouble with Chinese authorities but they can clear up the matter by sending money to a bank in Hong Kong.

Another scam involves the perpetrators approaching Chinese seniors and telling them bad luck or ill health will befall the victim or a loved one unless they turn over cash or jewelry.

"The suspects prey on the victim’s spiritual beliefs and fear that bad things will happen to their loved ones," the department said in a news release Friday. "In some cases, the scammers will exchange jewelry and cash for a worthless gift."

The third scam involves Chinese job advertisements offering $100 to $300 per day to make jewelry, but once the victim responds to the job ad, they are tricked into a fake romance or investment opportunity, according to police.

"Vulnerable and unsuspecting people in our community are being tricked into sending thousands of dollars to people they’ve never met," Vancouver police spokesperson Const. Tania Visintin said in the release.

"By the time they realize they’ve been scammed, the fraudsters have disappeared and their money is gone."

Police are asking the public to spread word about the scams to their friends and family, and to report suspected scams to the Vancouver police non-emergency line at 604-717-3321.