An aggressive hoax caller has been flagged in the Cowichan Lake area and that has prompted an important warning from local police.
Lake Cowichan RCMP has stated last Tuesday morning a man called a residence saying he was calling on behalf of the Canadian Revenue Agency.
The caller was overly angry from the get-go and demanded personal and financial information over the phone.
“Before he asked any questions, he began screaming at the homeowner,” said Cst. Darcy Caston from the Lake Cowichan RCMP in a press release. “The caller became more enraged as the call went on and eventually stated he would call back shortly and if the homeowner didn’t answer his questions he would be issuing an arrest warrant for them.”
Police wish to warn people of similar calls, describing them as “fraudulent.”
“Members of the public should never give out personal information or financial information over the phone,” said Caston. “In this case a voicemail system had also been set up for the phone number with a message claiming that the caller had reached the desk of a CRA employee and could leave a message. The CRA has confirmed that they would never make such a call and that this is a common tactic of fraud artists who attempt to use high pressure tactics to convince people to provide them with personal information or money.”
Caston also stated that similar types of calls are most common at this time of year during income tax season.
Lake Cowichan RCMP encourages anyone with further information or leads on this crime or other fraud calls to contact the detachment at 250-749-6668 or call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
Residents can also contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre by looking up the website at antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca