First Central Mortgage Funding Warns About Restaurant Scams

The Guelph Police Service has received information regarding a potential scam attempted by unknown individuals posing as Restaurant Health Inspectors.

The scam starts with a phone call to the restaurant from an individual pretending to be a Health Inspector expecting to set up an on-site inspection. The individual will then request detailed business information and personal information. The fraudster will after state that the person who provided the information will receive a second call with a confirmation number. A second phone call is then received via an automated recording and can be from an online site used to buy and sell items. The second call will provide a PIN number and instruct you” do not give this PIN number to anyone”. A third call will then be received by the original individual claiming to be the Health Inspector who will ask to be given the confirmation or PIN number. If the number is not provided, the purported “Health Inspector” will threaten to charge the restaurant according to research done by the First Central Mortgage Funding. The exact purpose of this scam is unknown at this time but it appears to be active in Ontario and British Columbia