Don’t be fooled

Since I wrote last week, I have seen more of the deceptive letters where dishonest people try to extort, cheat, lie, con others for their money. I think by now many persons are aware of the tactics of the scammers on the Internet, so you can put them to shame by not responding. Don’t be fooled. Someone I know very well showed me a check that was sent to him.{{more}} It appeared to be authentic and it was written for a sum of $3,880. The attached letter told him that he had won US $175,000 in the international lotto powerball held in the United Kingdom. By the way, he has never played the powerball. It claimed that his name was taken from the database of North American department stores, including stores like Wal-Mart, Sears, Staples, among others. Quite a windfall, but it is not for you!

The check sent to him was to pay the tax for non-resident and administrative fees, but yet he was asked to pay the fees to a tax agent through the services of Western Union and Money Gram transfer. Why send a check then? After the tax is paid, the remaining monies will be sent to him. Before the check is cashed (that is the check in the letter) he had to call a specific number. Who cares so much about you to send this money for you when you did not even buy a ticket? Once you send the money to the scammers, that will be the end of it. You would receive no money. If 100 persons respond to the letters, then the scammer would be $380,000 richer. These tricks are too old, and are coming too often, to be duped by them.

Crimes in SVG

I am concerned about the bleeding of my country from the crimes perpetrated on innocent persons. Burglary is far too rampant in a small country like ours. We are in the Christmas season and those who did not work would want your hard earned money. Try to keep your property safe. We cannot throw up our hands in the air. We have to secure our property the best we can and be vigilant. Look out for strangers in your area who are trying to get information on your whereabouts before striking. You have to be careful on the streets and in crowded shopping areas. A stronger police presence would go a far way.

I recall a time when NY suffered a difficult time and visitors were told about the many attacks on members of the public. They were told not to wear jewellery, such as chains or bracelets, on the streets because criminals would yank them off. They were warned about con men coming to their doors. There are still crimes, but not to the extent of what occurred in the 1980s and 1990s. The Mayor, Rudy Giuliani, vowed to remove the thugs from the streets and it went down in history that he did clear the streets of NY. Mind you, crimes have not been completely wiped out, but the streets are safer.