By Peter Rakobowchuk
THE CANADIAN PRESS

MONTREAL — A week before Christmas, the Mounties are telling Canadians they had better watch out and better not cry if they get a letter informing them they have won a big prize.

They warn the letter could be part of a scam aimed at defrauding Americans and Canadians of millions of dollars.

The RCMP held a news conference Tuesday to announce the seizure of more than 5,000 letters with phoney cheques worth nearly $195 million.

It’s an unusual step for the Mounties to take considering no one has been arrested and no charges have been laid in connection with the Montreal-based operation.
“Actually, it’s very rare that we will publicize an ongoing investigation, however with Christmas and the new year coming, we feel that people should be made aware of the letters,” RCMP spokesman Luc Bessette said.

The fraudsters would send out letters with bogus cheques ranging between $2,000 and $5,000, leading recipients to believe they had won a big prize.

“The letters said that you won either a lottery or a trip worth $50,000 and, in order to get your prize, you had to take the bogus cheque, cash it and send the money back in order to pay some (administration) fees to get the big prize,” Bessette told reporters.

“In Canada, it is illegal to ask for any money if you win a prize.”

He also said the operators of the scam were pressing people to cash the cheque and send the money back quickly so they would get the cash before the banks had a chance to check.

He said the fraudsters even wrote in some letters that, in order to avoid being a fraud victim, the recipient should not talk to anyone about getting the letter.
Bessette said the police investigation began a few months ago when Canada Post discovered counterfeit postmarks on certain letters.

He said when the letters were opened, fraudulent cheques were found inside.

The case was then handed over to COLT, the specialized team that deals with telemarketing fraud.
It carried out a surveillance operation between Nov. 14 and Dec. 14 which led to the interception of 50,065 fraudulent letters.

They were addressed to American citizens — some as far away as California — as well as a number of Canadians including Montreal residents.
The RCMP says bogus cheque scams are a form of mass marketing fraud.
It adds that mass marketing per se is not illegal, but when the message being conveyed is false or if the information provided misleads a client, it becomes fraud.