Toronto police are warning people of an ongoing fraud investigation involving fake Domino’s pizza delivery vehicles after numerous reports of victims being scammed.
In a news release Tuesday, police say a dark-coloured vehicle with a Domino’s Pizza sign has been lurking in large retail store parking lots. There are two suspects involved, a female who poses as a customer and a male who poses as the delivery driver.
Police say the female suspect approaches a victim asking for help to pay a pizza delivery fee with a debit card because the driver does not accept cash.
She then convinces the victim to lend their debit card and offer to pay for her pizza in exchange for cash. The victim is taken to the vehicle and provides their debit card to the male suspect, according to police.
They enter their PIN number into a modified debit machine that records their PIN and debit card information. After the transaction, the victim is given a different bank card that resembles their own, and the victim accepts the cash from the female suspect before leaving, police say.
The suspects are then left with the victim’s debit card and use the PIN to make a number of fraudulent purchases and/or withdrawals.
Police are reminding residents to be careful when making any type of debit or credit transactions.
“Be skeptical. Most legitimate delivery services accept cash, so if someone tries to convince you otherwise, this a red flag that this may be a scam,” police said.
In addition, they say the public should never hand their card or disclose their pin to anyone.In a case where people share their card with your card, police are urging the public to make sure the card that is returned to them is theirs.
Police warn to be aware of fake wireless point of sale terminals or those not connected to the internet, and to not go through with the transaction if something seems strange.
“If you think you may be a victim of debit card fraud, contact your bank immediately and they will take the appropriate steps to protect you. For example, they may block your card to prevent losses, ask you to change your PIN or cancel your card and issue you a new one,” police said.
Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 416-808-4200 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 416-222-TIPS (8477).
