On February 11, 2013, Steinbach RCMP received a report of fraud from a resident in Steinbach who informed police that he had responded to a Kijiji ad which was advertising Winnipeg Jets tickets for sale.
The residented reported that after several emails and text messages to and from the seller of a two day period, the victim sent money through a postal service. Not only did the seller not send the tickets, but soon after the money was sent, they stopped responding to any messages whatsoever.
Police investigation into this matter has revealed that the culprit(s) have a lengthy history of frauds ranging from the east coast of Canada to the Province of Alberta for similar internet ticket based incidents.
RCMP would like to remind people not to send money to persons you haven’t met without taking the proper steps to verify the legitimacy of the individual. Many online services offer insurance to people conducting online transactions through their websites, providing that the sender follows the guidelines and policies that the website sets out. In many cases, persons may possess false identifications and could be communicating on smart devices that are capable of generating phone numbers that are not registered to telephone companies, making investigations into these types of matters quite challenging.
If you have been the victim of fraud, or have information to assist police with an investigation, please contact your local RCMP Detachment.
