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Be aware of possible scams, say local RCMP

Submitted by Sgt. G.D. Simpson
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Submitted by Sgt. G.D. Simpson

A 31-year-old local female called the Clearwater RCMP on Dec. 4, to report a fraud under $5,000.

The complainant reported that she was “puppy scammed” on Facebook. She was attempting to buy a puppy from a person on Facebook, named “Kaaris William,” in Williams Lake, B.C. She received photos of the puppy, of its parents and updates that the puppy had received its first shots and had been de-wormed.

She was supposed to pick up the puppy on Sunday Dec. 6, from Williams Lake. The complainant completed a $350 email money deposit for the puppy to the seller. After the transfer was accepted, the Facebook account was no longer active. The complainant found out that this scam was being used in Merritt, Kamloops and Williams Lake, as well as possibly other areas.

With a banking fraud alert, the customer was advised the male trying to accept the money for a puppy scam was a Mark Ayeah, who resides in Cameroon, Africa. Police checks for William or Ayeah were negative. The complainant reported this information to police hoping that others would not get scammed the same way she did.

Clearwater RCMP are receiving a high number of complaints regarding frauds and scams in which people are being randomly targeted via phone, email, text and social media. Please be vigilant and protect all your personal information or data.

Do provide any information or payments without first confirming who you are dealing with. If you are unsure, reference the internet, contact Phone Busters, the federal government’s anti-fraud call centre, or call police.

Collision on Highway 5

The BC Ambulance Service advised the RCMP of a collision on Highway 5 at Little Hell’s Gate, near Avola, B.C. at 1:52 p.m. on Dec. 6.

A tractor trailer had flipped off road right onto its side. The driver was out and uninjured. Cst. Meyer attended. Temperature was -1 degree. The roads were wet but not slippery.

The driver was identified on scene and had been operating a Freightliner tractor, pulling a trailer loaded with frozen pork out of Manitoba registered to the Royal Bank of Canada. The driver was travelling from Edmonton enroute to Surrey, B.C., travelling down hill in the switch backs just over 100 km/hr when the trailer started to tip.

The driver tried to swerve to get the trailer back down, but both flopped onto the driver side and slid into the ditch, stopping when hitting a tree. The tractor was demolished.

Local highways maintenance was advised and sanded the area just in case any freezing occurred overnight. Police obtained photos and advised the local heavy towing company and flaggers for recovery. The driver was issued a violation ticket for speed relative to conditions, section 144 (1)(C) of the Motor Vehicle Act. Police checks of the driver were negative.

Police also provided the heavy wrecking outfit with the phone number for the trucking business owner to make towing and storage arrangements. There was roughly 500 litres of diesel in the semi’s tanks which was contained and managed by local highway maintenance.

Police are reminding everyone to drive according to weather conditions and to ensure that you are utilizing good winter tires.

Sgt. G.D. Simpson is the detachment commander at the Clearwater RCMP detachment.

Anyone with information on a crime is encouraged to call your local RCMP detachment or to report anonymously, Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.