A phone scam that is plaguing the entirety of Canada has reached Prince Rupert.
An organization claiming to be the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has been contacting approximately five Prince Rupert residents in the past few weeks and telling them that they owe money to the agency.
"What they'd like you to do is go and get prepaid Visas and send them the numbers and pay off the debt," said Rupert resident Stuart Forman, who was contacted by the scammers.
"They're from the Philippines or India or somewhere and they've got a local number that's non-traceable here. So you phone them back and then they talk to you and threaten you," said Forman.
The number from which Forman received the call was 844-240-3071 and the person claimed to be named Brian Walker. It's worth noting that the organization uses different numbers.
"They were very intimidating. They said they'd seize your bank accounts," Forman said.
After Forman approached Prince Rupert RCMP, he was told that this organization is one of the most far-reaching ones in Canada by the Canadian Anti-fraud Centre (CAFC) and they've even had victims in tears because they sent so much money, they no longer had funds to eat.
If residents think they have been a victim of fraud or have been contacted by a fraudulant organization, call Prince Rupert RCMP at 250-627-0700.