An Oceanside individual has lost over $100,000 in a scam involving a cold call from a man identifying himself as "Alex". (Dreamstime)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

huge loss

Oceanside resident robbed of over $100k in convincing crypto scam

Dec 29, 2023 | 5:21 AM

NANAIMO — Scammers have struck once more, clearing six figures out of a local bank account via a cold call.

Oceanside RCMP were alerted to the situation earlier in December, when the victim reported the incident to them.

Sgt. Shane Worth told NanaimoNewsNOW the unidentified resident received a call from a man named “Alex”, who managed to convince them to share crucial information including banking numbers.

“Once they obtained their banking details, the suspect was able to access the victim’s account number and they were able to send several e-Transfers to a crypto company and unfortunately the total loss was over $100,000.”

Investigators continue to work with the victim and their bank to try and trace the transactions.

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Worth admitted though, scams involving cryptocurrency are very tough to track and resolve.

“A lot of it is encrypted, it’s off shore and it goes through so many hands once it’s gone out of your account so it is extremely difficult for our investigators to track where your money went, but it’s easy for scammers to take your money that way.”

He said the best way to protect yourself from becoming a victim is to simply not engage the caller.

Reputable organizations including banks, government offices or other agencies do not cold call asking for banking information.

“Do not give your bank details over the phone ever, unless you made the call to your financial institution and you know who you’re talking to,” Worth added. “If someone phones and says they’re from the bank or ICBC or the CRA or some other agency, say you’ll take their details and hang up.”

The incident came around the same time as another, separate scam involving another Oceanside resident.

Worth said just over $2,700 was stolen from the victim’s account through the common ‘bail scam’.

“They got a call from a police officer advising that their son had been arrested for a motor vehicle incident and that the child needed money for bail. The [scammer] called multiple times during the night and eventually provided an update to the victim that there was a one year old child in the car that their child had allegedly struck, and died.”

The victim then e-Transferred money to the scammer before realizing the true nature of the situation shortly after.

Investigators are again working with local banks to trace the money.

Worth said using death, especially of a young child, is a common scammer tactic as it induces an emotional, and at times irrational, response.

“They try to make it an emotional deal that someone’s died and you need to get family members involved so it tugs on people’s heart strings and it gets people not thinking. They’re not thinking about what they’re doing and under other circumstances they might think or know it’s a fraud.”

Worth said the best way to avoid this scam is to simply hang up and call the police department in question.

He added phoning the relative in question directly can also quickly reveal the scam as several past incidents have been solved by the potential victim making contact with the apparently arrested person as they sat at home, not in a jail cell.

Ultimately, police aren’t calling victim’s family members demanding bail money.

“We would never phone people to ask for bail money over the phone, that’s not something the police would do. If someone does phone and tells you that your loved one is in custody and needs money for bail, it’s likely a scam.”

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre keeps a list of common and active scams, with information on what to look for in the event you receive a call.

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