Police warn of scheme where fraudster pretends to be Brandon officer

A person holds a smartphone in this stock image. (Shutterstock)

The Brandon Police Service is warning residents about a scheme that involves someone pretending to be a police officer and asking for bail money.

On Monday, police received a report of an attempted fraud. The complainant told police they received two phone calls from a number that appeared to be the Brandon Police Service non-emergency line. When they answered these calls, there was no response.

The complainant then received a call from what appeared to be their spouse’s number. During this call, someone pretending to be a police officer told them their spouse was in custody and needed bail money.

The fraudster called the complainant a cab to take them to the bank and told them to withdraw $5,000. The complainant was then told to take the cab to a second location and deposit the money into a bitcoin ATM.

However, the complainant didn’t follow these instructions and brought the money to the Brandon police building, where they were told this was all a scheme.

Anyone who receives a phone call like this is advised to hang up and contact police.

The Brandon Police Service notes that it does not accept any money for a person requiring bail. It adds that you will never be asked to deposit money into an ATM for someone needing bail, and that fraudsters have the ability to fake any phone number.

This scheme is similar to the Grandparent Scam; however, victims of all ages can be targeted.

More information on frauds can be found online. https://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/index-eng.htm