- NEWSDAY.CO.TT - A la Une - 16/Jul 11:44

Inspector: More Faceboook car scams in Tobago

INSPECTOR Mahalia Bacchus, of the Tobago Division, says scams involving mostly vehicles are on the increase. On the Tobago Updates morning show on July 15, Bacchus said, “Scams are on the rise in Tobago. We are getting a lot of reports where people are paying money for things that they have not received, particularly vehicles. “They are seeing advertisements on the Facebook space and different areas and people are parting with their money without doing their due checks and diligences to make sure that who they are sending it to is a legitimate person or company.” She said some people were putting out as much as $50,000 only to realise that the transaction to purchase the vehicle was bogus. Bacchus said people are also making hefty payments for cellular phones. “People are paying $4,000 for phones. The phones have to be delivered and they are not seeing the phones.” She warned unsuspecting people against making hefty purchases from unknown sources without the necessary checks and balances. Bacchus said, “It is becoming a lot and we want people to become aware that you do your checks on these persons doing these advertisements. Make sure they are who they say they are because you are going to lose your money. She said people are also losing money via social media messages from sources purporting to be commercial banks or other financial institutions. “People are losing money when they press links and when you look your entire account is wiped out. You have to look at the authenticity of the messages that the banks send to you.” Bacchus said banks would hardly ask someone for personal information in an email or phone call. “They would not ask you for those things unless you actually go over the counter or into the bank.” She continued, “So people get carried away. Sometimes you are told that you win something and they go ahead and they press a link and these people are phishing in terms of fraudulent offences.” Bacchus urged people to be cautious. “We want persons to be aware and to try to avoid parting with your money so easily.” She said people are usually drawn to cheap prices, which, in itself, is a red flag, depending on the item. “Why would I pay $4,000 on a vehicle and the person will be willing to come to Tobago with this vehicle to have it transferred to you so easily. Most people want most of the money for the vehicle before it is handed over.” Bacchus said some people are also paying others for US currency without receiving it. “You not even supposed to be conducting those kinds of transactions because you are not authorised to sell. That come like you selling on the US black market. They take the chance.” She asked, “At the end of the day, would you hand over $20,000 to somebody you don’t even know because you communicated on the phone with another person? You hand over the money to that person, you don’t know them and expecting the US to come to you?” Bacchus said such individuals are not obligated to bring the money back because it is a dishonest act. “If you are trading something, you should get it one time.” She also urged individuals to be wary of people who appear too convincing and overly confident. In other developments, Bacchus said the police are continuing to target drug blocks across the island. “We are trying to deter persons from the use of marijuana in excess of what they are supposed to have. But prior to that, we had a major drug bust as well where a vehicle was intercepted with a quantity of marijuana coming off the vessel in Scarborough. We continue to make inroads in those areas.” She added the police have also been charging people for cocaine use. “For the past week or so, we had approximately ten persons being charged for possession of cocaine, which indicates to us that we probably have a serious problem in our space here in Tobago that needs to be dealt with.” The post Inspector: More Faceboook car scams in Tobago appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.