The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Thursday, March 3, 2016 | 10 Police crack down on fraudsters through education by Tim Whitnell Metroland West Media Halton senior Doug Armstrong is growing weary of attempts to separate him from his money. The Burlington resident says he and his wife, Lois, receive at least three automated phone calls per week from some entity claiming, in generic terms, the couple has significant credit card debt and that it can help them handle it. He just hangs up. The boiling point for the Armstrongs, both in their 80s, came late last week. Doug says they received four recorded phone messages last Friday, each two hours apart, stating forcefully they owed the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) for income tax arrears. Doug says he knows they do not. "They were threatening," he said of the recorded messages. "It was the same person (voice) and it was definitely scripted with the In a community with an aging population and a higher-than-average disposable income, it makes this area very attractive to fraudsters. These fraudsters are very convincing and will confuse a senior into sending them a small fortune before their children can intervene. I cannot stress enough, never send funds by means of a wire transfer to anyone you're not familiar with. Halton Regional Police Regional Fraud Unit Det.-Sgt. Troy Izlakar Det.-Sgt. Troy Izlakar same message." Doug said each call concluded with the threat if they didn't call a provided phone number, to arrange for payment, a collection agent would show up at their home within 24 hours. A quick search online of the number the recorded message told them to call, which begins with an 844 area code, leads to sites that have messages from people who say they have had similar experiences to the Armstrongs with supposed contact by the CRA about taxes owing. Meanwhile, the CRA's website has a warning about this very thing "... an ongoing scam in which taxpayers across the country receive phone calls or emails from individuals impersonating CRA employees. These people are scammers...." "I can see a lot of seniors like us being taken in by it," Doug said. Except they weren't. $ FURNACE diAgNostiC spECiAl AR REGUL $99.00 9 locATIoNs To seRve you beTTeR www.aireone.com 49 liMitEd tiME oNlY! Must Present Coupon. Cannot be Combined with other offers. offers A+ RATING (905) 849-4998 After the second automated call, Doug picked up the phone himself and called Halton Regional Police. He says he spoke with a civilian member of the service who listened to him and then suggested he call the RCMP . However, the next call Doug said he made was to Burlington MPP Eleanor McMahon's office. Someone there told him to call the Ontario Provincial Police anti-fraud hotline. He did, but a long wait on the line prompted him to hang up. Doug knows what he'd like to do if a live caller ever tried to scam him. "The language I couldn't repeat. I'd probably say a few choice words and then hang up," he said. Det.-Sgt. Troy Izlakar, head of Halton police's Regional Fraud Unit, says he anticipates CRA scam attempts will increase as the tax season filing deadline of April 30 nears. · · · March is Fraud Prevention Month and Halton police are using the occasion to encourage residents to recognize, reject and report fraud. Fraud Prevention Month is a collective effort that brings together 125 law enforcement As a Maid Right owner you have my quality guarantee with every clean. FREE SM CLEAN CLEAN 289.809.9823 (XXX) XXX-XXXX localurladdressgoeshere.com Oakville.MaidRight.com Same Reliable Owners Clean Every Visit Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products Colour-Coded Cloths Reduce Cross Contamination EnviroShield® Whole Home Disinfecting Strongest Guarantee In the Industry ©2015 Maid Right Franchising LLC. Maid Right and JAN-PRO International are subsidiaries of Premium Franchise Brands LLC. agencies, public and private sector organizations to combat the crime. The Competition Bureau of Canada is a primary public resource for Canadians, providing crucial guidelines on how citizens can protect themselves against fraudulent activity. "In Halton Region, we do experience victimization of certain types of scams and frauds, particularly to our senior population," said Izlakar. "In a community with an aging population and a higher than average disposable income, it makes this area very attractive to fraudsters." Police are encouraging adult children of senior parents or relatives to take the time and know why, where and to whom their elderly parents are sending money to. "These fraudsters are very convincing and will confuse a senior into sending them a small fortune before their children can intervene," said Izlakar. "I cannot stress enough, never send funds by means of a wire transfer to anyone you're not familiar with, anyone wanting you to send them money via wire transfer is a sure bet fraudster." Police said in the majority of cases, funds scammed seniors are sent by SPECIAL OFFER: OFFER: from SPECIAL wire transfer to a Third World country, making it almost impossible to trace or recover. During the month of March, Halton police will be engaging with external organizations Schedule3 3cleans, cleans, Schedule and be diligent on getthe the4th 4thfree* free* get social media with *Receive the 4th of four cleans at no charge *Receive the 4th of four cleans at no charge the goal of increasing up to $150 value. Not valid on prior services. up to $125 value. Not valid on prior services. social awareness to a Not redeemable for cash. Applies to new Not redeemable for cash. Applies to new customers only. variety of frauds and customers only. scams that are currently widespread. "During my time in this unit, I have been witness to some pretty devastating financial fraud, predominantly to seniors," said Izlakar. "Day to day, people don't think about fraud until it happens to them or a family member and that really needs to change, hopefully this month, we may grab the attention of some people." For more information on fraud prevention, visit www. competitionbureau.gc.ca or www.antifraudcentrecentreantifraude.ca or www. bbb.org/scamtracker. · · · Ontario Provincial Police is also promoting Fraud Prevention Month with a media campaign focussing on five topics: · Emergency/Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) scams; · Romance scam; · Microsoft/computer scams; · Phishing/Bank website scams; · Lottery scams. "Whether it is vulnerable citizens cheated out of their life savings or young people stripped of their assets and forced to start over, the harm caused by all types of fraud is staggering. The money taken is used to fuel other illegal activities, causing further harm to society as a whole," OPP Commissioner Vince Hawkes stated in a press release. If you or someone you know suspects they've been a victim of fraud, contact your local police service, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-2228477 (TIPS) or go online at www.tipsubmit.com/start. htm. -- with files from David Lea, Oakville Beaver