Burnaby RCMP warns of Victim Services scam

Mounties in Burnaby are out with a warning after a senior who already lost money in a grandparent scam was contacted by another fraudster.

The Burnaby RCMP says on March 27, a man in his 80s was called by a scammer who “posed as a Burnaby RCMP Victim Services employee.”

Mounties say the senior was told they could help get the lost money back and even provided a legitimate Victim Services callback number.

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Police say the man realized that it was a scam when the caller couldn’t identify themselves, at which point he called the RCMP.

“It is unfortunately not uncommon for police to see victims of fraud targeted more than once,” the Burnaby RCMP notes in a news release.

Corp. Mike Kalanj says they are looking into the case, but “would like to recognize this senior for identifying this as a scam and coming forward to police.”

“It’s disgusting to see a scammer posing as a Victim Services employee while trying to defraud this senior for a second time.”

The service helps with emotional support and assistance after crime and trauma, Mounties note, and says that employees will “never ask for money or offer to assist victims in recovering lost money.”

For anyone that receives a suspicious phone call, or from someone who claims to work for the Burnaby RCMP or Victim Services unit, police say to hang up immediately and call the RCMP’s non-emergency line at 604-646-9999.