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Clinton News Record, 2016-07-13, Page 88 News Record • Wednesday, July 13, 2016 OPP UPDATES TWO OLD SCAMS STILL GENERATING MONEY (HURON COUNTY, ON) — Huron County Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) members would like to once again remind the public to be aware of two active scams that recently vic- timized two Huron County resi- dents. These scams are cer- tainly not new however they are still proving to be effective. The "Emergency Scam" some- times known as the "Grand- parent" scam targets vulner- able persons and seniors by playing upon their emotions to rob them of their money. An 83 -year-old from Central Huron received an emer- gency call from someone that impersonated his nephew. The scammer proceeded to say he had been involved in a colli- sion in Quebec and he needed $1,000 in bail money to get out of custody on an impaired driving charge. The victim was concerned for his nephew so he imme- diately followed through and wired $1,000 to the scammer. Shortly thereaf- ter the scammer called back and requested an additional $1,000. At this point the victim became suspicious so he con- tacted his nephew and con- firmed he was safe and not in Quebec. At this point the victim realized he had been scammed and called police to report the matter. Every year emergency scam artists contact thousands of citizens and many people get scammed in their rush to help. Many victims are hesitant to say 'no' or to hang up on someone on the phone, which makes them easy targets for criminals to access substantial sums of money. In 2014, five (5) per cent of all complaints received by the Canadian Anti -Fraud Centre were victims of the "Emer- gency Scam". Of those 1,977 complaints, 737 people were identified as victims who reported a total loss of more than $2.4 million. In another popular scam, a 70 -year-old from Central Huron fell victim to the Micro- soft Anti -Virus scam. On July 4, the victim received an unsolic- ited call at home from a com- puter technician offering to update her computer to Win- dows 10 and to install an anti- virus software program. The victim purchased the $199 package and allowed remote access to her computer. After allowing access to her com- puter the computer crashed with a virus. She also received further calls from the scammer telling her that he was going to hack into her online banking accounts. Keep yourself safe by watching out for these common warning signs: Urgency - The scammer always makes the request sound very urgent, which may cause the victim to not verify the story. Fear - The scammer plays on the victim's emotions by gener- ating a sense of fear. Request for Money Transfer - Money is usually requested to be sent by a money transfer company such as Money Gram, Western Union or even through your own financial institution. To avoid becoming a victim, Huron OPP advises you to first check with another family mem- ber or trusted friend to verify the information BEFORE sending money or providing credit card information by phone or e-mail. If you or someone you know suspect they've been a victim of the Emergency Scam or the Microsoft Anti -Virus scam, hang up and contact the Canadian Anti -Fraud Centre. TRAFFIC STOP LEADS TO DRUG POSSESSION CHARGES (CENTRAL HURON, ON) —A traf- fic stop early this morning has resulted in three Huron County teens facing drug possession charges. At approximately 2:15 a.m. an OPP officer conducted a traffic stop of a Volkswagen that was travelling westbound on Hydro Line Road near Kin - burn Line. Upon speaking with the occu- pants of the vehicle officers noticed an open bottle of liq- uor inside the vehicle. A search of the vehicle was conducted which resulted in officers fur- ther locating a small quantity of an illegal drug inside the vehicle. As a result, 19 -year-olds Doug Brindley, from Central Huron, Ryan Lamb from Ashfield-Col- borne-Wawanosh and James Lane from Ashfield-Colborne- Wawanosh have all been charged with Possession of a Schedule I Substance — Cocaine. They were all released from custody with a court date sched- uled for August 22, 2016 at INDIAN RIVER DIRECT PEACH TRUCKLOAD SALE Thursday, July 14th, 1pm-3pm China Palace Restaurant CCASE LOT SALE FREESTONE GEORGIA PEACHES www.indianriverdirect.com the Ontario Court of Justice — Goderich. Lamb was also served with a ticket for Having Liquor in Open Container Other than Licenced Premises, Residence or Private Place. SUSPENDED DRIVER HITS EMPTY (BLUEWATER, ON) —A 34 -year- old driver from Huron East is facing a Drive While Under Sus- pension charge after running out of gasoline last weekend. Just before 7:00 a.m. on July 2, 2016 an OPP officer spotted a Chrysler Intrepid parked par- tially in the northbound lane on Goshen Line. Upon checking on the driver the officer discovered the driver had run out of gas and was in need of assistance. The officer transported the driver to the nearest gas sta- tion to get some fuel how- ever moments later it was dis- covered the driver had a sus- pended driver's licence. Conse- quently, Thomas Barry, 34 years of age from Huron East has been charged with Drive While Under Suspension. He will have to attend Provincial Offences Act Court in Goderich on August 9, 2016. DANGEROUS DRIVER ATTEMPTS TO ELUDE POLICE IN CORN FIELD (MORRIS-TURNBERRY, ON) - A young driver from Markham is facing several driving related charges following a brief police chase that took place last night. At approximately 8:15 p.m. a Huron County Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) officer observed a blur of a motor vehi- cle traveling eastbound on Mor- ris Road near Clyde Line. The officer activated a RADAR unit and measured the speed of the vehicle at a danger- ously high speed of 191 km/h in a posted 90 km/h zone. The officer immediately activated his emergency lights and followed after the BMW sports utility vehi- cle. It appeared as though the driver was going to come to a stop when he slowed down and pulled off onto a private laneway. 01 of 411ti 111'3k'�wl;fly1t.414, 1 .4I» CAI ithob 16 CFO 1,17# Menkrber Mak Your 0'1i peer. Winn. 'Mnv (aSIER , J B4 KIVU 9.7 Ci E -151' :323 AW439553 u However, to the surprise of the officer, the driver decided to take his vehicle on an off- road adventure through a corn- field. Presumably the plan was to lose the officer however the plan did not come to fruition. The BMW bottomed out and nearly got stuck on several occasions. The driver was able to loop back around toward the Janeway whereupon the chase came to a halt when the officer used his police vehicle to block the driver from exiting back onto the laneway. The officer approached the vehi- cle and the driver was taken into custody without incident. Fei Pan, 18 years of age from Markham, has been charged with Dangerous Driving, Flight While Pursued by Peace Officer, Race a Motor Vehicle and Drive While Under Suspension. He has since been released from custody with a court appearance scheduled for August 15, 2016 at the Ontario Court of Justice - Goderich. His licence has been sus- pended for seven days and his fluid leaking BMW has been impounded for a week. HURON OPP INVESTIGATING THEFT FROM STORAGE UNITS (BLUEWATER, ON) - OPP offic- ers are investigating a break, enter and theft that took place at a storage rental facility located on Dashwood Road. Police are seeking information from the public with respect to this theft that took place sometime between 3:00 p.m. on June 25th and 9:00 a.m. on June 26. Those responsible forced entry into several storage units, a motorhome and camper trailer parked at the property. The thieves caused several hundred dollars in damage to the prop- erty and also made off with sev- eral items. Some of the valuable items that were stolen include: -An orange Kubota Tractor with a front bucket, model BX2370 -A yellow Dewalt gas powered air compressor, model EMGLO D 55250 -A red Honda generator, model EX 1000 - A blue Yamaha generator, model EF2880 - A 39" LG Television, model 39LP5800 - A 42" LG Smart Television, model 42LB5800 The total value of the stolen property has not been deter- mined. Any person with information regarding this incident should immediately contact Huron OPP at 1-888-310-1122 or (519) 524-8314. Should you wish to remain anonymous, you may call Crime Stoppers at 1 -800 -222 -TIPS (8477), where you may be eligi- ble to receive a cash reward of up to $2,000. YAMAHA SIDE- BY—SIDE STOLEN (BLUEWATER, ON) — OPP offic- ers are investigating the recent theft of a Yamaha Viking util- ity vehicle (UTV) stolen within the past week from a property located on Parr Line northeast of Zurich. Sometime between 10:15 p.m. on June 30 and 9:45 a.m. on July 1, someone entered onto the property and pried their way into a locked mechanic shop. After gaining access into the shop those responsible located the Yamaha side-by-side and proceeded to drove off on the stolen machine. The stolen UTV is described as a 2014Yamaha Viking, model YXM700, dark green camo, 4 -wheel drive side-by-side with a utility box and roll-over cage. The machine is valued at approximately $15,000. Any person with information regarding this incident should immediately contact Huron OPP at 1-888-310-1122 or (519) 524-8314. Should you wish to remain anonymous, you may call Crime Stoppers at 1 -800 -222 -TIPS (8477), where you may be eligi- ble to receive a cash reward of up to $2,000. 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