2023-09-19 17:03:00
The various police zones of Walloon Brabant recently announced a new phenomenon of canvassing scams in the Young Province, mainly in the more rural areas of the east of the region. Appearing a few weeks ago, this new invention of the crooks consists of going door to door offering the sale… of boxes of pralines.
Concretely, the scammers show up at the homes of elderly or isolated people, pretending to be representatives of the scouts. They would even wear a scarf typical of these youth movements. They therefore offer for sale boxes of pralines, of poor quality and more expensive than they really are, for the benefit of the scouts.
If pretending to be someone else is already reprehensible, scamming comes a close second. Once the victim is ready to purchase, the scammers say they do not accept cash but only card payments. During the transaction, they find several excuses such as the card that does not pass or a connection problem, in order to carry out the transaction several times. According to the websites of several police zones in Walloon Brabant, there is also talk of substitution of cards, by exchange with another, fake one.
Roofing work: resurgence of scams in Walloon Brabant
So far neither the police nor the courts have wanted to inform us about the precise number of victims and the amounts stolen. But several files are under investigation. The phenomenon still has enough to alert the authorities who relay it on their website or on social networks. Several areas of the province, however, tell us that they have not yet identified cases on their territory. This is the case for Waterloo, Braine-l’Alleud and Wavre, but the three areas say they remain vigilant because, in this type of scam, the perpetrators are organized and travel.
In the East Walloon Brabant police zone, where the phenomenon would be more widespread, Commissioner Stéphane Vandroogenbroeck recalls that this is not the first time that fraudulent canvassing has taken place in the province. And the praline boxes are just one of the many variations of fake sellers of carpets, wines, etc. Among others, there are also fake moss removers, who offer roof cleaning at exorbitant prices, taking advantage of ignorance of current rates. Not to mention the fake police officers and their variants from the SWDE, Ores, etc. They take advantage of intruding into homes to steal objects and money.
A “Clever Granny” campaign to fight against scams in Walloon Brabant
More and more scams (online)
In Walloon Brabant, cases of fraud have been increasing in recent years, from 1,198 cases recorded in 2018, to 1,237 in 2020, 1,516 in 2021 and 1,807 for 2022. Compared to other types of offenses, scam has not decreased during the confinement period. Moreover, last June, in our columns, the head of Braine-l’Alleud, Stéphane Vanhaeren and the mayor Vincent Scourneau (MR) announced the shift of crime from the streets to the internet.
2907 offenses, 544 people deprived of liberty, etc. Braine-l’Alleud presents its 2022 police statistics
More particularly, police statistics differentiate between scams via the internet and those outside the internet (attempts included). These have tended to decrease in recent years, 416 in 2018, 351 in 2019, 258 in 2020 and 283 in 2021. A resurgence has appeared for the year 2022 with 401 cases listed.
“Clever granny” keeps watch
”Today scammers are more and more inventive, they are diversifying in their methods and techniques. It’s nothing more than a fraud on feelings” informs Commissioner Vandroogeenbroeck. To this end, the Governor of the province, the King’s Prosecutor and the Director of the Federal Police launched the “Mamie cunning” campaign to make people aware of fraudulent canvassing. Tips and announcements can be found on the governor’s website and on social networks.
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