A recent incident involving an international student has prompted police to put out a warning to all international students about scammers targeting students and their families.
The incident happened last week, when an international student was contacted by someone pretending to be a “high-ranking foreign official” and demanding the student comply with their demands or risk their parents’ safety, according to a press release from the New Westminster Police Department.
The student was contacted through WeChat, a popular Chinese messaging and social media platform, and told not to reach out to their family, use their cellphone or to use social media, noted the release.
Police say that at the same time the scammer was in contact with the student, they were also contacting the student’s family, threatening violence against the student unless the family gave them money.
The scammers convinced the student to flee Canada. She was later located safe in another country, according to police. (Police did not say which country.)
The investigation is ongoing at this time.
“When incidents like this occur, students are threatened, defrauded of money, and coerced to go into hiding,” said New Westminster Police Department spokesperson Sgt. Jeff Scott in the release. “Once the online scammers have intimidated the student into hiding, they contact the parents and defraud them out of money.”
New Westminster Police Department is asking anyone who receives a message or phone call they suspect is a scam not to reveal any personal information and to contact the police department at 604-525-5411 or Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501.
