Fraud, false pretense
A 19 year old Brampton resident has been arrested. On Tuesday January 16th 2024, St. Thomas police were notified by a local resident, that they had received a suspicious phone call from someone claiming to be their Son. Through the course of the conversation, it was learned the caller stated they had been in a collision, were arrested and a Bailiff would be attending their address to collect a large sum of money. The St. Thomas resident notified police immediately and through investigation, STPS located and arrested the suspicious caller. As a result, a 19 year old Brampton resident has been charged with one count of Obtaining a False Pretense. The Brampton resident was transported to police headquarters where they were processed and released on an undertaking with a future court. ST24000729
Protecting yourself from Scams
Emergency scams or the “Grandparent” scams continue to be a concern. These types of scams can target anyone, not just seniors or “grandparents”. These incidents prey on the victims fear of a loved one being hurt or in trouble and needing help. Examples of this includes the caller needing bail money because they’ve been arrested, being in a car accident or that the caller is having trouble returning from a vacation or foreign country. Reports are showing a new variation where fraudsters contact potential victims via email or text message, claiming to be a loved one asking for a favour. For this favour, they’ll ask you to send money or gift cards.
These fraudsters will:
- Claim to be law enforcement officials, lawyers and impersonate the grandchild/family member
- Use urgency and threats to convince you to take out money
- Claim that there is a “gag order” preventing you from speaking about the situation or calling police
- If you agree to pay the requested amount (cash or cryptocurrency), fraudsters will arrange to pick up the funds in person or will ask you to send cash in the mail
How to protect yourself:
- If you receive a phone call claiming to be from a family member in an emergency situation, hang up the phone and contact them directly using a phone number you already have – not one provided by the suspected fraudster.
- If the caller claims to be a law enforcement official, hang up and call the St. Thomas Police Service directly 519-631-1224
- Be suspicious of telephone calls that require you to immediately act and request money for a family member in distress
- If “This doesn’t sound right” – it likely isn’t. Call police.
- It is important to know the Canadian Criminal Justice System does not allow for someone to be bailed out of jail with cash or cryptocurrency
- Be careful what you post online
- Scammers can get details that you shared on social media platforms and dating sites to target you or get names and details about your loved ones
- Don’t trust caller ID names and numbers.
- Scammers use technology to disguise the actual number they are calling from and can make it appear as a trusted phone number
Information on common scams and how to protect yourself can be found here
Failure to comply
A 37 year old St. Thomas resident has been arrested. On Tuesday January 16th 2024, STPS located the individual at a residence they were on conditions to not attend. The 37 year old was arrested and charged with 3 counts of Failure to Comply with Undertaking and transported to police headquarters where they were processed and held for court, subsequently being remanded into custody. ST24000719
