Victim in Eastern Passage scammed out of $100K, say RCMP

A person in Eastern Passage, N.S., has been defrauded out of more than $100,000 in a phone scam, according to police.

Halifax District RCMPsaythe victim received a call on Thursday from someone claiming to be with Mega Millions. The fraudster told the victim they had won $18 million and a new Mercedes.

The victim was then told to deposit money into different accounts at different banks in order to claim theprize. They did, losing more than $100,000.

Sgt. Andrew Joyce, spokesperson for the Halifax District RCMP, said the victim has not had any of the money returned.

Joyce is warning residents that these kinds of scams are being attempted "quite frequently."

"When you're contacted to advise that you've won a prize of any kind, and you have to pay money to receive that prize ... 100 per cent of the time that I'm aware of, it's always a scam," he said.

Joyce said if people receive a call like this, they should hang up.

People can also report these calls to theCanadian Anti-Fraud Centre online or by calling 1-888-495-8501.