The Timmins Police Service says that it has received calls and online reports this week about a suspicious asphalt company making its way throughout northern Ontario. “The information we’ve received so far is that there’s a group going around door-to-door, offering to pave driveways with leftover asphalt, for significantly discounted prices,” said acting Det. Sgt. Kathryn Beatty of the Timmins Police Service. Beatty said the price the fraudulent contractors are quoting is $2,000 for a quick job. As far as she knows, no money has been exchanged in Timmins because people have doubted the sales pitches. She added that seniors and other vulnerable individuals tend to be targeted. “They’re showing up in unmarked vehicles, they’re saying that they’re just in town doing a quick job, or they have leftover material,” Beatty said. “They’re not providing business cards, business names, addresses or phone numbers and if they do, then we later find out that they’re not legitimate.” If these contractors happen to make you an offer, she said residents should take note of their appearance and what their vehicles look like -- and report the descriptions to police. “If people show up at your door, do your due diligence, ask for a business card, ask for phone numbers, take five minutes and verify that the information you are being given is accurate,” Beatty said. “Sometimes when the deal is too good to be true, it’s because it’s not a good deal.” One Timmins resident who did not want to appear on camera told CTV News that he was approached yesterday by a man in a white pickup truck with an Alberta licence plate who said he had “recycled asphalt and a grader ready to make his driveway look really good.” Other comments posted on social media also indicate a white vehicle is being used and the workers are telling people they’re from Thunder Bay.
