Photo courtesy joealbertan.blogspot.com
Quinte West OPP are sending out a warning about another variation of the jewellery scam.
On Tuesday, two men were reportedly approaching people in the Byrne Avenue area in the east end, attempting to sell people gold jewellery.
The suspects touted the gold as being real and of “much higher value than its selling price”.
At least one person did buy the jewellery and took it to a professional who found it to be fake.
The suspects are described as men of Arabic descent, in their 20s or 30s, who were driving a white coupe with Ontario plates, possibly reading CDYA 239.
Investigators say in many cases the suspects have been aggressive in their sales tactics and are not to be approached.
You can call Quinte West OPP or Crimestoppers if you’ve had a similar experience.
Police also have released the following tips to prevent yourself from becoming a fraud victim:
- Don’t be fooled by the promise of a valuable prize in return for a low-cost purchase.
- Be extra cautious about calls, emails or mailings offering international bonds or lottery tickets, a portion of a foreign dignitary’s bank account, free vacations, credit repair or schemes with unlimited income potential.
- Don’t be afraid to hang up the phone, delete the email or close your Internet connection.
- Don’t purchase a product or service without carefully checking out the product, service and company.
- Don’t be afraid to request further documentation from the caller so you can verify the validity of the company.
- Don’t disclose personal information about your finances, bank accounts, credit cards, social insurance and driver’s licence numbers to any business that can’t prove it is legitimate.
- Shred unwanted personal information such as bank statements, credit card bills, unwanted receipts, cheques, pre-approved credit applications and old tax returns.
- Check your credit report often and report problems immediately.
- If a scam artist contacts you, or if you’ve been defrauded: Report it! Your reports are vital to the anti-fraud efforts of law enforcement agencies.
OPP are also pointing to this link from the Competition Bureau of Canada called “The Little Black Book of Scams” for more tips to protect yourself.
