THE New Westminster Police Department is warning the public that the Canada Revenue Agency scam is hitting New Westminster with a renewed intensity.

“Unfortunately we recently learned of two victims who lost upwards of $23,000 and $1,600,” said Media Relations Officer Sgt. Sanjay Kumar. “Both of these people received phone calls claiming to be from the CRA and the NWPD. The fraudsters used call spoofing technology which manipulated the call display and made them appear to be the organizations they claimed.”

The victims were instructed to deposit funds into a bitcoin machine. Once these funds are converted into cryptocurrency they are nearly impossible to track.

The New Westminster Police Department said it would like to stress that it does not deal with tax issues and the CRA cannot issue a warrant for your arrest. Additionally, the CRA and the NWPD will never ask for your personal banking information over the phone.

The CRA advises Canadians to confirm the status of their tax accounts before taking any action that may be the result of pressure from suspicious calls or emails, and to verify the legitimacy of the communication by contacting the CRA directly at 1-800-959-8281.

The best course of action to take to prevent others from falling victim to the CRA scam is to talk to elderly friends and family about the scam and how it works.

Call New Westminster Police if you have been victimized by the scam. If you would like to learn more about the Canada Revenue Agency scam, you can visit their website: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/scrty/frdprvntn/menu-eng.html