Scam Hurting First Nations Chiefs’ Reputations
Thursday, August 09, 2007 at 12:55
RCMP say two more Saskatchewan residents have been defrauded of hundreds of dollars in a scam where someone claims to be buying a large item for a First Nations chief.
The Mounties say the latest victims are from the Regina area, and have had RVs or other large merchandise advertised for sale on the Internet or trading magazines.
The people targeted are contacted by someone posing as a First Nations chief, who says he is interested in the item and is sending his son to complete the transaction.
The victims describe the person they meet as a clean-cut Aboriginal man in his 20s.
The suspect tells the victims about needing cash for gas or other reasons, and makes off with the money without the sale being completed.
Corporal Jason Kerr with the RCMP’s Saskatchewan Commercial Crime Section says the scam is costing people money and damaging the reputations of First Nations leaders.
Kerr is urging anyone selling anything to be wary of offers of more than the asking price or requests for up-front money.