Police across the province are warning the public of an ongoing scam where fraudsters are tricking people into converting their money into gold.
According to a statement from the Nova Scotia RCMP, the emerging scam sees the bad actors pretending to be police officers. Victims are contacted by scammers who tell them they are a part of a fraud department of a major bank.
The victims are told their money is at risk from hackers and are told they should buy gold from a legitimate online dealer in Canada using their savings and investments.
RCMP said that the fraudsters ask the victim to then “hand that gold over to a police officer for ‘safekeeping.’”
The scammers are producing fake badges to the victims when they meet and take the gold. The release notes that similar incidents have been reported in other parts of the country.
“Police will not take financial instruments from people for safekeeping, just as banks will never ask you to remove your money from your accounts and use it to purchase something else,” Cpl. Mitch Thompson of the Commercial Crime Section, said.
The Nova Scotia Mounties are investigating one of the incidents because one of the scammers presented a fake RCMP badge. They were not wearing a police uniform or an officer cruiser, the release details.
“If you receive a call from your bank and aren’t sure about what they’re telling you, hang up before you follow any directions,” police warn. “Reach out to your local bank branch, call the number on the back of your debit or credit card, or talk to someone that you trust about what you should do next.”
Keep it Factual
Add CityNews Halifax as a trusted source on Google to see more local stories from us.
