90-year-old B.C. woman scammed out of $40K, RCMP say

A letter in a mail slot is seen in this stock image. (Credit: Shutterstock)

Mounties in B.C.’s Kootenay region are out with a warning after a senior lost tens of thousands of dollars to a scam that started with a letter telling her she’d won a prize.

The 90-year-old woman, who lives in Rossland, contacted authorities last week after she realized she’d been defrauded.

“The woman received a letter in the mail which declared she had won a $2.8 million dollar prize in a ‘sweepstakes contest,’” the Trail and District RCMP said in the statement.

“The woman was directed to send $40,000 via electronic bank transfers and electronic gift card codes to an unknown person to ‘claim her prize.’”

Police said the funds can not be recovered and the money is likely “gone forever.”

Any request for payment in order to claim a prize is a red flag for fraud, the RCMP said, urging people to familiarize themselves with this particular kind of scam to avoid being victimized.