Identity thieves open credit cards, spend $12K-plus: Salmon Arm RCMP

Photo: Castanet File Photo

Police say a Salmon Arm-area man was ripped off for more than $12,000 after a thief opened four new credit cards in his name.

On Nov. 30, a man from Tappen told Mounties he had been the victim of an identity theft.

“Over the past two weeks, someone had been opening accounts in his name at various retail outlets, and had also applied for four new credit cards in his name,” Salmon Arm RCMP Const. Andrew Hodges said in a news release.

“The transactions appeared to be occurring in Surrey and included over $12,000 spent on several new cell phones.”

Hodges said investigators spoke with the man about how to better protect his information going forward and RCMP shared the information with the Surrey Police Service for further investigation.

To learn more about common scams and how to protect yourself and your personal information you can visit the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre website or the BC RCMP Frauds and Scams page.