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Last month, Canada Border Services Agency seized 288 fraudulent money orders, after border officers examined courier shipments from Nigeria.
The total came to $200,000 US, with 97 money orders valued at $430.35 each, 42 money orders at $950.25, 59 money orders at $730.25, 89 money orders at $830.35 and one money order left blank. After closer examination of the money orders, officers were able to determine the documents were fraudulent and referred the shipment to RCMP for investigation.
The money orders were destined for a female individual, who had been in contact with a person from Nigeria online. The suspect gained the confidence of the Canadian female in order to pass money orders into Calgary.
The increase in attempts to scam Canadians from outside the country is due, in large part, to how Canadians act, said Sgt. Patrick Webb, RCMP media relations spokesman for the Southern Alberta district.
"We are polite people and (scammers) only target successful locations," Webb said. "Canadians are susceptible to this (and) Canada certainly is a target."
This type of fraud usually targets innocent individuals who receive a counterfeit cheque, money order, cashier’s check or any other form of a financial instrument. The individual then takes the fraudulent item and deposits it, unknowingly passing it as an authentic item.
The victim is then usually left responsible for the financial loss incurred, after having given the remainder of the money or all of it back to the scammer, as well as facing possible criminal charges.
Scammers usually initiate contact through such forums as dating services, classified ads for sale of large ticket items, Internet employment services or ads looking for rental accommodations or roommates.
"The Internet has certainly been one of the more successful ones," said Webb of how scammers get in touch with potential victims. "If it’s not a success scam, the culprit usually switches to another one."
Even though money orders have come under fire as the choice for scammers to use against their victim, Webb still believes that it is a safe and secure way of transferring money to a loved one. However, he also advised caution.
"You have to really consider how that financial instrument was handed to them," he said. "Don’t be in a rush to deposit it or if you do, wait for it to clear first."
The RCMP is combating scams in two ways: the first is educating the public to be aware that there are these frauds and scams and the second is to arrest the scammers.
"If we can stop the crime before it happens, we’d be very successful," Webb said.
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