Calls legit, but not local

Photo: Darren Handschuh

A telemarketing campaign by the Canadian Police Association had some people calling local RCMP to see if it was a scam.

While the calls asking for donations to the association's national anti-bullying campaign are legitimate, they are not associated with the North Okanagan RCMP.

“The Vernon/North Okanagan RCMP detachment would like to let residents ... know we are not involved in a recent telephone campaign by the Canadian Police Association,” said spokesperson Gord Molendyk. “The RCMP is not affiliated in anyway with the Canadian Police Association.”

Over the past few days, local police have received numerous phone calls from concerned citizens inquiring whether the telephone solicitation is legitimate.

"The CPA have confirmed a marketing firm was contracted to undertake a telephone campaign asking for donations to support this campaign,” said Molendyk. “It appears the telemarketers, on some occasions, have implied the RCMP is involved in the campaign, which we are not. Several local residents who have called our office have said the telemarketers are quite pushy in their attempts to get people to support the campaign.”