By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

Scam Season: cashiers stop elderly Nanaimo woman from buying $4K in gift cards

Mar 19, 2018 | 12:29 PM

NANAIMO — A gift card scam involving a fake lawyer and RCMP officer nearly cost an elderly Nanaimo woman $4,000.

Police said she was called by someone claiming to be her son on Thursday, March 8, saying he was arrested for texting and walking and faced a $4,000 fine. The caller said the only way his fines could be paid was through online gaming gift cards. The woman was told the same information by people posing as a lawyer and an RCMP officer in the elaborate scam and was convinced enough to try to buy the gift cards at Shoppers Drug Mart.

RCMP. Cst. Gary O’Brien said four Shoppers employees tried to tell her not to buy the cards, called Steam Cards, but couldn’t convince her.

“This woman, she’s been reading the news. She said ‘I know of the iTunes scam, that’s a fraud, but this one is for real (and) involving my son,” O’Brien said.

When she couldn’t buy the cards at Shoppers, the elderly lady in her 80s said she would go to Walmart instead, prompting the cashiers to call both Walmart and the RCMP to stop her. She was denied again at Walmart and then told by the real police she was caught up in a scam.

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“She was very grateful,” O’Brien said of the elderly woman after she found out. “She talked about what she’ll do if it happens again. She was thinking through the process to prepare herself for next time.”

This was the first time O’Brien’s seen an RCMP officer be impersonated, which he said was disconcerting.

“We’re not surprised it’s gone to that level. People should be aware that’s what scammers are doing.”

During tax season, the number of scam calls increase dramatically.

If anyone does receive a call saying they need to buy gift cards to avoid any legal action, O’Brien recommended they take a deep breath and really listen to what they’re being asked.

“If anybody’s asking you for money over the phone, you have to ask yourself who is this person and do I really believe it’s someone I know? Call someone and verify the information.”

The Canada Revenue Agency or police will never ask for money over the phone.

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