The owner of a residence for seniors in Varennes is warning the public against an unscrupulous young woman who would disguise herself as a Canada Post employee to defraud seniors.
“I was really angry when I realized what she came to do. I was far from suspecting that there was a scam behind that”, expresses without mincing words Martine Tellier, owner of the Residence Varennes.
On February 7, a resident of her establishment located 25 minutes from Montreal was the victim of these scammers.
“They were well prepared. Everything was calculated. She even had a Canada Post badge and uniform. […] This is the first time I’ve seen this in 10 years! she confides in Logstill in shock.
With an accomplice
The scheme used by the criminals in the Residence Varennes is rather simple. A bogus advisor, who claimed to be employed by a Desjardins caisse, first called an elder.
He was then notified of a problem with his bank cards. Finally, the scammer indicated on the phone that a Canada Post employee would pick up her cards the next morning.
“She had a lot of personal information about her, such as her investments and her bank accounts, explains Martine Tellier. On the display, it was even written Desjardins. We don’t know how they do that. It was still believable.”
The day after this call, a second accomplice went to the scene disguising herself as a Canada Post employee. A residence camera filmed the young woman who would be committing her crime, with a smile on her face.
“After taking the cards, she made transactions and we contacted the police. She would have done the same thing in Chambly, according to them, ”says the owner of the premises.
A simple search on the Internet has, moreover, enabled the Log to identify sweaters with the inscription “Canada Post”, like the one worn by the young fraudster, for sale for less than $30 online.
Screenshot of Redbubble.com
A sweater with the inscription “Canada Post” for sale for less than $30 on the web. This one seems identical to the one worn by the alleged fraudster.
Photo provided by Residence Varennes
Screen capture of a video where we see the young woman who allegedly defrauded elders. She would have falsely posed as a Canada Post employee in Varennes and Chambly.
Note that Résidence Varennes posted photos of the alleged fraudster on Facebook on February 7. Their post had been shared more than 20,000 times at the time of publishing this article.
Photo provided by Residence Varennes
Résidence Varennes posted photos of the alleged fraudster on Facebook on February 7. Their post has been shared more than 20,000 times at the time of posting this on Monday.
Ongoing investigation
Sergeant Jean-Luc Tremblay, of the Richelieu-Saint-Laurent intermunicipal police board, confirmed to the Log that an investigation was underway in connection with this scam.
“It’s not an innovative ploy they’re using. We know him in several police forces in Quebec. […] Depending on the outcome, eventually, charges could be filed. But no, there have been no arrests yet,” said Mr. Tremblay.
Canada Post in the know
Valérie Chartrand, a spokesperson for Canada Post, says her organization takes this situation “very seriously”.
“We are aware of this fraud and that a person is impersonating a Canada Post staff member. […] As a police investigation is ongoing, it would not be appropriate to make any further comments,” Ms.me Chartrand.
Canada Post also invites anyone witnessing suspicious activity to immediately inform the police and contact their customer service.
Jean-Benoît Turcotti, spokesperson for the Mouvement Desjardins, recalls for his part that their banking institution “will never come to collect or send someone to collect the debit or credit cards of its members and customers at their home”.
“If it is Desjardins who initiates a call, at no time will we ask for personal information from our members and clients since we already have it in our files”, specifies Mr. Turcotti.