Ontario Provincial Police say residents in Huron County lost more than $943,000 to cryptocurrency investment and romance schemes over a two-month period. Nine incidents were reported to OPP between Aug. 30 and Oct. 31. “In eight of these cases, victims believed that their money was being invested in the stock market and in cryptocurrency,” they wrote in a media release. “One victim fell for a romance-type scam.” On Aug. 30, a 55-year-old from Central Huron lost $130,000. The following day, a 67-year-old from Bluewater reported a loss of $52,000. On Sept. 9, a 68-year-old Bluewater resident said they lost $88,500 and a 76-year-old from South Huron revealed they lost $401,000 on Sept. 20. Two separate incidents were reported to OPP on Sept. 22. One was $74,000 from a 69-year-old in South Huron and the other $72,600 from an 85-year-old in North Huron. On Oct. 1, a 64-year-old reported a loss of $10,000. At the end of the month, an 80-year-old from Central Huron lost $80,000 to a romance scam and a 70-year-old from Central Huron was taken for $35,000. According to the Canadian Anti Fraud Centre, 23,000 people lost money to fraud schemes in the first nine months of the year. They said the total loss was pegged at $544 million. The CAFC also estimated only five to 10 per cent of victims report these types of crimes to law enforcement. OPP shared the following tips to prevent fraud:
