A senior in Nanaimo has been fleeced out of money just before Christmas after falling for a common phone scam. 

Mary-Anne Travis says she wants to warn the public to be wary after she was bilked out of more than $1,000 by scam artists last week.

Travis said she picked up her phone Dec. 17 and heard what she thought was the voice of her daughter in an upset state. 

B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 know how they did it, but it sounded like my daughterB次元官网网址檚 voice," she said.

The person posing as TravisB次元官网网址檚 daughter said she had been in a car crash and a boy in the other car had suffered serious injuries. Another person, posing as a police officer, came on the line to say bail for the B次元官网网址渄aughterB次元官网网址� would be a certain amount and Travis was instructed to purchase a prepaid credit card. 

B次元官网网址淭hen I got another call from my B次元官网网址榙aughterB次元官网网址� telling me the little boy had died and then she just went silent and didnB次元官网网址檛 say anything else,B次元官网网址� Travis said. B次元官网网址淚t was her crying. I donB次元官网网址檛 know if they can get a voice print somewhere or what, but it was very good. It was excellent.B次元官网网址�

A second call from the B次元官网网址榦fficerB次元官网网址� informed Travis that because the boy died, the bail amount had increased.

B次元官网网址淟ong story short, I ended up at the store getting pre-paid Visa cards again and they cleaned me out of every cent,B次元官网网址� she said, adding that while she didn't wish to reveal exactly how much money she lost, it was between $1,000 and $10,000. 

Travis said she gets scam calls regularly and always just hangs up the phone and doesnB次元官网网址檛 know why she fell for this one, but it could be because she has recently gone through a personal crisis and is B次元官网网址渋n an emotional state right now.B次元官网网址�

She said she now wants to help keep other people from being victimized.

B次元官网网址淚f I could prevent one person from being scammed like this IB次元官网网址檓 happy B次元官网网址� IB次元官网网址檓 having a hard time keeping it straight because IB次元官网网址檓 crying a lot. IB次元官网网址檓 a senior and IB次元官网网址檓 sure somehow they knew that B次元官网网址� They caught me at a low time and then I couldnB次元官网网址檛 get hold of my daughter on the phone to try to see, so I thought I guess this is really happening. They were tugging at my maternal heart strings, is what they did.B次元官网网址� 

Reserve Const. Gary OB次元官网网址橞rien, Nanaimo RCMP spokesperson, said people need to always be suspicious.

B次元官网网址淎nytime anyone calls you asking for money, itB次元官网网址檚 a scam,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淒onB次元官网网址檛 interact with the caller and hang up the phone.B次元官网网址� 

OB次元官网网址橞rien said police, banking institutions and the Canadian Revenue Agency will never call people and ask for money over the phone and he advised that anyone who receives a call, such as the 'grandson scam,' to hang up and report it to the Nanaimo RCMP at 250-754-2345. 

To learn more about recent scams and fraud and how to avoid becoming a victim, visit the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at http://antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca.

Travis said she is angry she fell for the ruse, but will be all right. 

B次元官网网址淚 have a roof over my head and food in my cupboard, so IB次元官网网址檒l be fine,B次元官网网址� she said.