Erin resident loses $5,600 in shipping container scam

A stock image of shipping containers. (Pexels/Swapnil Sharma)

Someone in Erin has lost thousands of dollars after they tried to buy a shipping container online.

The resident called Wellington County Ontario Provincial Police on Tuesday around 1:30 p.m. and told them about an alleged fraud.

They said they had placed an order with a company that appeared to be in Port Elgin. The resident thought they had bought a shipping container and arranged for it to be delivered to their home. The victim sent money through an e-transfer, but the container was never delivered.

After the money was sent, the victim wasn’t able to contact the company again and the seller’s website had disappeared.

The victim went to the company’s listed address, but the business wasn’t there.

Investigators said the bank account that received the e-transfer is linked to an address in New Brunswick.