RCMP warn of scam asking victims to give police gold for ‘safekeeping’

Police in Nova Scotia are warning about an “emerging” scam in which victims are allegedly tricked into buying gold and handing it over to people posing as police officers.

The Nova Scotia RCMP Commercial Crime Section says one instance of this type of fraud has been reported in the province, and points out that similar frauds have been reported elsewhere in Canada.

According to the RCMP, the victims are contacted by scammers pretending to be with the fraud department of a major Canadian bank. The victims are told their money is at risk from foreign hackers, and they must purchase gold online from a legitimate dealer using their savings and investments.

The victims are then told to hand over that gold to a police officer for safekeeping.

“Scammers meet with the victims, produce fake police badges, and take the gold,” the RCMP said in a Monday news release.

In the Nova Scotia case, police say the scammers claimed to be RCMP investigators but had fake badges and didn’t wear police uniforms or drive marked police vehicles.

The RCMP reminds people they do not take such items for safekeeping, and that banks would never ask a customer to remove money from their accounts to buy something.

“If you receive a call from your bank and aren’t sure about what they’re telling you, hang up before you follow any directions,” said Cpl. Mitch Thompson in the release.

“Reach out to your local bank branch, call the number on the back of your debit or credit card, or talk to someone that you trust about what you should do next.”