The Wellington County OPP is warning the public about, yet another phone scam that occurred recently in a neighbouring county.
The complainant received a telephone call from a male who was described as having an East Indian accent, police say.
“The complainant initially spoke to a male and was later transferred to a female. The complainant was provided a case number and advised that there was a warrant for her arrest,” police stated in a press release.
The caller left a phone number – 613-946-6059 -which returns to the Government of Canada case processing centre in Ottawa for temporary resident visa applications. Police say this number has been linked to other fraud related incidents.
The complainant was advised that she had two options: either attend her local RCMP detachment immediately, or do nothing and get arrested on an immigration warrant.
“The complainant advised that she would attend her local detachment and was then told that she needed to do so immediately,” police stated.
“The complainant did not leave her residence as she believed it to be a scam and moments later heard noise coming from her garage as someone was tampering with the garage door.
“She could hear males speaking in what was described as an East Indian accent. She was able scare the men off and she observed three males leaving in what was described as a silver minivan.”
Police are reminding residents that Canada Immigration and the police do not operate in this manner.
“If you suspect that something just isn’t sitting right, take the time to investigate it yourself,” police said in the press release. “If there is an immigration issue, you should have received prior written knowledge about it and not just a cold phone call telling you that you need to respond immediately. If you’re not sure, call police.”
For further information on this and other scams, visit www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/index-eng.htm.
