Police say child is involved in Guelph taxi fare scam

An undated photo of a Guelph police car. (CTV News Kitchener)

Police in Guelph are investigating after four people were defrauded of thousands of dollars in a fake taxi scam involving a child.

The first incident reported to authorities happened around 8 p.m. last Friday.

Guelph Police Service (GPS) said that a child approached a male from Guelph who was entering a business on Woodlawn Road West and told him he was trying to pay for a taxi, but the driver wouldn’t take cash. The boy then asked the male to pay his fare with his debit card and said in return he’d give him cash.

The male complied and was handed back a receipt and his bank card, police said, however, he later realized it card was not his.

The victim contacted his bank and learned that his debit card had been used to withdraw $3,000.

In a separate incident at about 10:15 p.m. on Saturday, police said a woman, also from Guelph, was in her car at a business on Woodlawn Road West when a child approached her and told her the same story.

In this case, the woman also paid the cab fare, but realized a short time later that she’d been handed back someone else’s card. The victim was able to lock her bank accounts before losing any money, police said.

The following day, on Sunday, GPS said they were contacted by another woman who reported that she was waiting outside a business near Edinburgh Road South and Stone Road West on Saturday evening when she was approached by a similar vehicle. After paying the “fare,” the victim realized $1,500 had been withdrawn from her bank account.

Also on Sunday, a third woman contacted police to report a similar interaction with the two males matching the same description. They said that this incident happened at about 9:30 p.m. on Saturday in the parking lot of a business on Stone Road West. Investigators said the victim later discovered that the duo had kept her card and had withdrawn almost $1,000 from her account.

In all cases, police described the driver as a brown-skinned male in his 20s with a thin build and possibly with a beard. He also wore a mask, police said.

The child is described by police as “possibly” white and 11 to 14 years with dark hair. He was last seen wearing a blue shirt, grey and white shorts, and black and red shoes.

Police are describing the car as a white Audi with an orange and white taxi sign on the roof.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Guelph Police Service at 519-824-1212 or Crime Stoppers anonymously.