Police detectives say a Toronto woman with “diminished mental capacity” agreed to sell her $2-million home as a part of a multi-year ruse by scammers who convinced her she won a substantial amount of money and needed to pay fees to recover the prize.
The 85-year-old woman, who has not been identified, now has her financial affairs in the care of Ontario’s Public Trustee.
“It was an elaborate scheme,” said Det. Alan Spratt, an investigator with the Toronto Police Financial Crimes Unit.
Spratt said the woman, who lived alone, had “no close network of support” or family. She was first contacted in 2014 by someone who “took a long time to establish a rapport” with her, police said.
They said she sold her home at a price of about $2 million to pay the fraudster. At one point, she was instructed to purchase $20,000 worth of cellular phones, which were intended for shipment internationally. But the shipment didn’t take place.
Another $380,000 was recovered by police as well. Spratt told Global News another Ontario senior was “unwittingly duped” in the scam, which contributed to the recovery of the money.
But investigators claim at least $600,000 was lost in the fraud. They aren’t certain whether more money, proceeds from the sale of the woman’s home, was also lost.
“What we see with elderly people who don’t have a lot of support that suspects become the main people they communicate with,” said Spratt.
In this case, Toronto police are working with the Peterborough Police Service and financial institutions. So far, investigators have not arrested any suspects.
Police said those who believe they have been victimized in a financial crime should contact their local police service or Crime Stoppers anonymously.