2 Brampton men charged with using fake CRA calls to scam seniors in Hamilton and B.C.

Two young Brampton men have been arrested by Hamilton police for allegedly defrauding senior citizens out of thousands of dollars with fake Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) calls.

Hamilton Police Service says investigators from the crimes against seniors unit began looking into a report of a 95-year-old Hamilton resident being defrauded.

The senior was asked to send money to an address to avoid being arrested, police say.

Officers executed a search warrant at a Brampton address, police say, and identified two men theysay were involved in the scam.

Police say they also identified an 86-year-old British Columbia man who was scammedout of more than $5,000 by the same men.

The Brampton men, aged 19 and 26, are bothfacing a charge of fraud under $5,000 and fraud over $5,000.

They'll appear at the John Sopinka Courthouse on Feb. 9, 2021.

How to avoid scams

Police offered a number of tips to avoid scams.

• Be cautious of suspicious phone calls.
• If you receive a call that you owemoney, call the CRA.
• Never provide personal information over the telephone, text or email.
• The CRA or the police will never request payment by money, service business, iTunes/Google Pay, credit gift cards or bitcoins.