Woman says she was almost scammed

A local woman says she's lucky she didn't end up losing $3,000 after answering a job posting and receiving an allegedly fraudulent cheque in the mail last Thursday (April 6).

Madonna Girletz saw a classified ad that ran in the March 21 issue of the Mountain View Gazette, which was seeking a caregiver for an aging parent several days each week.

The ad listed an email address, and a phone number with a Toronto area code. When Girletz called the number, she said she couldn't understand the person who answered, and thought it might be an elderly person, which seemed to align with the job post.

She sent an email asking for more information, and got a response the next day. The writer said her husband worked for the government, and they would be moving back to Canada from Australia. They were offering $400 weekly, to help care for her mother-in-law and run errands.

Girletz said she felt something was a bit off, and asked herself why a government employee would be relocating to the Olds area. She wondered if the ad had mistakenly run in the wrong newspaper, and replied as such.

The writer answered quickly, confirming the ad was in the correct newspaper, and that the family would be moving to Bowden in the first week of April.

The writer noted that their "financier" would send a cheque ahead of their arrival, and that Girletz should deduct her wages, while remaining funds would be used to get supplies for the house. She asked Girletz to provide her name, address and phone number, in order for the cheque to be drawn and mailed.

"I thought, that's pretty innocent," said Girletz, because they weren't asking for any financial information.

In addition, the writer said their realtor would be in contact in order to provide keys to the house, so that Girletz could deliver the supplies and prepare for their arrival.

"See, it all sounds kinda legit," Girletz said.

She provided the information, ostensibly accepting the job offer, and she received a reply, with vague instructions that when she received a cheque she should take her cut and forward the remainder to a store manager.

Meanwhile, another issue of the Mountain View Gazette hit the stands, and Girletz was surprised to see the same ad running for a job she had already accepted.

She sent another email, asking for some details, such as the store location, the house address and how to contact the realtor. The response ignored her questions, instead advising her that a cheque had been sent.

Sure enough, a cheque in the amount of $3,280.73 arrived last Thursday (April 6). It was a business cheque from a company in Hamilton, Ont. and drawn on a Bank of Nova Scotia account. While Girletz banks with a different bank, she decided to take the cheque to ScotiaBank to make sure it was authentic.

"So (the teller) looked it up," said Girletz, "and said, 'Yup, that's a fraud alright.'"

The bank advised her to report the incident to the RCMP. Meanwhile, she was now in contact via text messaging with the alleged husband, who was asking for play-by-play details as she attempted to cash the cheque.

When she told him the bank declined the cheque, he assured her it was only because it came from out of province. But by that point, Girletz says she was certain it was a scam.

"I mean he's not going to say 'Oh yeah, it's not real, I tried to swindle you.'"

When she discovered the cheque was apparently no good, Girletz went to the offices of Mountain View Publishing to report the scam.

"I want people to be aware that this kind of crap goes on," she said. "We're a small community, we're all like family, and I don't want anyone to get ripped off."

In hindsight, there were a number of things that didn't add up, and Girletz is lucky she paid attention.

"But they're pretty good," she said as she tapped the very official-looking cheque she received by FedEx. "They go to all this trouble."

Part 2 of this story will run next week, and include what to be aware of, and how to avoid being scammed.