Cathy Lancey has won many battles throughout her 68 years — even against cancer — but a recent scam is the one thing that's making her question her faith in people.
"I just can't take it anymore," she said. "You've got to believe in the goodness of people. And this is something I don't want to lose. I don't want to become a bitter old lady."
Lancey said she's sharing her story to warn others against fraud.
In June, Lancey fell victim to a scam after replying to a classified ad in The Chief, which has since been pulled and blacklisted by the newspaper.
The alleged fraudster, who identified himself as Peter Elder, offered Lancey a job to look after his mother.
Elder told Lancey she'd be on caretaking duties while another person, a "shopper," would be supplying his mother with necessities, such as food and toiletries.
Lancey then received a cheque for $3,250. She was told to deposit it and transfer $2,850 to the shopper's account. The name listed on the account is John Odeleye.
Elder told Lancey the cheque would reimburse her for the costs.
But the cheque bounced. By then, it was too late — Lancey had already transferred her money.
Squamish RCMP have confirmed Lancey's story.
"The use of transferring money from depositing cheques for other people has been a common fraudulent practice and those who have been asked to do this should contact the Anti-Fraud Centre or speak to their bank about the request," said Cpl. Sascha Banks in an email.
"There is a large number of fraudulent scams at the moment, including the CRA scams, and therefore you need to ask questions and seek advice before handing over money, gift cards, bitcoin, or any type of funds."
Police are still investigating Lancey's incident, Banks said.
Lancey's bank, TD Canada Trust, said that it has also opened an investigation into the matter.
A TD representative declined to answer whether Lancey's money was recoverable or if the fraudulent account belonging to Odeleye could be shut down.
Spokesperson Jeff Meerman said details of the investigation couldn't be revealed, but that the company sympathizes with Lancey.
"TD, along with local law enforcement, is currently investigating the incident and while we can't go into detail on the status of the investigation, we would like to take this opportunity to warn people that scams are becoming more sophisticated and to be skeptical about sending money or doing business with people they don't know well," he wrote in an email.
"In general, it's important for customers to know who they're doing business with, not allowing themselves to be rushed into a transaction and verifying that a cheque is legitimate."
The fraudulent cheque appeared to be from Campus Living Centres Inc., a company which manages student housing.
Tayte Hewson, the company's finance director, said her organization is not associated with any caregiving services.
"[There's] no connection to the company to whatever these schemes the people are trying to do," said Hewson. "We have been made aware of this situation."
She said the incident is under investigation and declined further comment.
Lancey, however, remains in a tight spot.
She said the scam has taken most of her savings and her pension cheques go straight to paying rent. This leaves her with little else for other necessities.
"I'm going into debt," said Lancey. "I've never had debt, but now I'm going into debt to live."
Lancey moved to Squamish in 2016 from Thornbury, Ontario.
Around that time, Lancey was dealing with some big setbacks in her life.
She said her brother had died and she had just been diagnosed with colon cancer.
"I wanted to be close to my family," Lancey said.
Some of her adult children live in the Sea to Sky Corridor, and in wake of some of life's challenges, she wanted to be near them.
Lancey is now cancer-free, but she still has to face the challenge of finding the funds to stay in Squamish.
Her children are keeping her afloat for now, but they can't keep it up for long, she said.
If her money situation isn't resolved soon, she may have to leave town, Lancey said.
She is hoping to find employment as a caregiver, having been a social and a childcare worker for about 40 years.
She's asking anyone who's interested in hiring a caregiver for clients of any age to contact her at [email protected].
