Individuals impersonating Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) employees prompted Leduc RCMP to send out a warning.
Police say this type of scam is happening across the country where fraudsters threaten people with arrest and use local numbers to confuse people.
“The scammers tell taxpayers they have a warrant for their arrest and in order to not get arrested they have to pay money or get gift cards and provide them to the scammers,” state RCMP
“The CRA would never request someone to pay money over the phone or get gift cards.”
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In an effort to confuse victims, the scammers use spoofing mechanisms. In this case, they have used the Leduc RCMP detachment number: 780-980-7267 in order to convince the victim that they are not scammers.
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“The RCMP plays a crucial role in educating the public about scams, and has a number of programs in place to track fraud, including one run by the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC),” stated Const. Bridget Morla of the Leduc RCMP. “The CAFC monitors all types of scams, and warns Canadians to be on the lookout for scammers.”
If you or a family member has fallen victim to this scam, please report to Leduc RCMP at 780-980-7267 or local police service, as well as the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. You have two ways to make a report to the CAFC; either by phone at 1-888-495-8501 (9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time) or through their online reporting tool at the Anti Fraud Centre.
