Coquitlam senior scammed out of $16,000

COQUITLAM (NEWS 1130) – A new Canadian living in Coquitlam has been scammed out of more than $16,000 dollars according to the Coquitlam RCMP.

Mounties say the 71-year-old had received a phone call on March 1st from someone claiming to represent ‘Corporate Security’ at a bank, claiming her credit card was compromised.

She was told in order to recover her “compromised money” she was pressured into purchasing thousands of dollars in gift cards at three different stores.

The victim then shared the numbers of those cards, and the money was essentially lost.

Corporal  Michael McLaughlin with Coquitlam RCMP says it’s a common tactic used by scammers.

Scammers are targeting a small, vulnerable percentage of our population with high-pressure scare tactics, he says.

McLaughlin says the best thing to do if you get a suspicious call is to hang up.

For many scams, the best defense is to verify. If it’s a legitimate call from the bank or the government, you’ll be able to hang up, talk to a trusted friend, then look up the bank’s number yourself and call them back, he says. And this is crucial: banks and government agencies will never, ever request payment in gift cards, Bitcoin or any form of online or virtual credit.

RCMP are sharing the story as part of Fraud Prevention Month’, hoping to stop others from being victimized.