Editor:
It’s always a sad day when one of the Langley officers asks me to do another ‘new scam’ warning.
Two reasons: First, it’s sad people have found one more way to steal someone else’s hard-earned money. And second, it’s sad this particular scam has found its way to Langley.
On the bright side, in this specific instance, the potential victim figured out the scam first and isn’t out any money. So let’s use her experience to make sure no one else falls victim.
Our Langley resident responded to a posting for a job as a caregiver for an elderly lady. She dealt with the ‘poster’ via email. He provided a name and indicated he would be out of town for the next few weeks and she should get things started to get his mother settled. He indicated he had found a rental suite for his mother and told her he would be sending her nearly $2,500 on a bank draft in her name. She was to then send a money gram to the property representative.
Our potential victim followed the instructions but had difficulty posting the funds through the money gram. She was now instructed to wire the money through Western Union to another name. This caused our complainant to become suspicious. She had a relative call the phone number provided by the ‘poster’ and the person who answered had a foreign accent. Immediately following this call, the ‘poster’ called back from a phone in another area code.
No more communications took place between our complainant and the ‘poster’. She has since been notified that the bank draft she was given was counterfeit.
Thankfully, our complainant was not defrauded of one cent of her money. The only thing she had to deal with is frustration and a few stops at the bank.
So what should you do? A few things come to mind. First, tell this story to everyone you know. Let’s protect each other. Second, listen to your own ‘spidey senses’. If you think something sounds hinky, it probably is and take a wide berth. Third, when you encounter one of these scams, call police! Give us a chance to warn others!
Holly Largy, Corporal, Media Relations Officer, Langley