The Prince Albert Police Service says they have seen a surge in victims of the Grandparent or Family Emergency scam. And these victims in the Prince Albert region have suffered significant financial losses.

The fraudsters may also work in tandem and connect the victim to another person claiming to be a police officer, lawyer, doctor, or representative of another profession. They will go so far as to have the supposed injured person speak on the phone who then claims their nose is broken which is why they don’t sound familiar.

Payment is often requested as cash, gift cards, or cryptocurrency.

Do not offer up important details about yourself including where you live, banking information, an alternate phone number but you can ask questions of the caller to verify their identity. Or hang up and call that family member or other relatives to verify the individual’s location. If the scammer says they are with an entity such as police or RCMP then call police or RCMP directly.