Feb 5, 2026
An unidentified B.C. man thought he found a convenient way to earn some extra cash from an unsolicited courier job he accepted that involved picking up cash from resident’s homes. Instead, he ended up unknowingly acting as an illegal money mule for a scammer that defrauded multiple residents using sophisticated scams, CBC reported (1).
According to multiple police reports, records and court documents obtained by the news outlet, the B.C. man went to multiple homes to retrieve cash from residents that the scammer had conned using “grandparent scams” — scams that are specifically targeted towards seniors using emotionally exploitative methods. A police report details that one Vancouver woman received a call from her grandson who was allegedly in jail, followed by a call from his attorney asking for cash to cover legal fees.
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Another woman from Langford, B.C. also handed over cash to the courier following a scam request, though she couldn’t remember how much. Her husband told the reporter she suffers from memory issues.
CBC found that police believe the unidentified delivery driver likely picked up the cash from both of these women. Filings that the courier handled around $30,000 from defrauded individuals.
Two days after conducting these pickups, the driver came forward to police after questioning if his new job was legal. At this time, no charges have been laid and police have kept the identity of the driver concealed as they believe he is a victim of a bogus job scam.
“Basically, they're hiding behind layers of people,” Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre spokesperson Jeff Horncastle told CBC. “Whether it’s bank accounts, transfers, [it serves] to make investigations, at the end of the day, more difficult for law enforcement.”
Scams all the way down
While some defrauding operations may involve just a single type of fraud, this story is unique because of how multiple scams were used.
The driver who came forward is likely a victim of a job scam, which fraudsters use to trick unsuspecting people to either pay for a fake job or to act as a “money mule” for a sham operation (2). These types of scams rely on using emotionally enticing prospects such as quick money for little effort or easy, guaranteed income — particularly useful baits to draw in Canadians that are still reeling from rising prices or other economic hardships.
RBC’s economics team reported that since January 2020, prices for essentials (e.g. food, shelter costs) have gone up 30% – completely outpacing the average 5% wage growth by 5% for Canadians (3). Moreover, as gig work becomes more commonplace for those trying to make ends meet (4), scam fronts or fraud operations posing as easy-to-access gig work can be harder to spot.
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The woman who potentially dealt with the unidentified courier was a victim of a “grandparent scam” or more formally known as an emergency scam as classified by the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) (5). These involve a senior getting a fake phone call from a family member or official requesting money urgently due to a crisis, such as a sudden arrest or accident.
Both of these scam types have heavily damaged Canadians’ wallets over the years. The CAFC’s 2024 Annual Statistics Report found that job scams experienced a significant rise in dollars lost that year, an increase of $17 million to $48 million (6). Additionally, emergency scams resulted in $5 million in losses from 546 victims.
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How to spot a scam before it’s too late
With bogus job scams, the stakes are especially high. If you get recruited, even unknowingly, to perform fake tasks to funnel money to a bad actor, you could be charged by the police (7). On the other end, you could be out thousands of dollars if a fraudsters successfully targets you with an emergency scam. Here are some tips to help you spot early signs of both before you get ensnared in a web of devious behaviour (8,9).
- Watch for unnecessary urgency. Whether it’s needing a gig worker right now or an emergency call from a loved one, scammers often use urgency to get you to act quickly and not rationally. If it feels like a job or a request is moving too fast, take note immediately.
- Exercise care with unsolicited job offers. If you were approved for a job opportunity you didn’t express interest in or didn't apply for, this could be the starting signs of a scam job opportunity.
- Double check all facts. With bogus job offers, always double check employer information through their website, public phone number and other readily available information. With grandparent scams, always call the person who allegedly asked for money back before taking action to confirm the story you were told is true.
Bottom line
An ever-climbing cost of living might make shady gig-work seem more appealing, but the risks are never worth the benefits. No matter how dire the financial straits you find yourself in, always exercise caution and practice due diligence before looking into a new job offer in the gig opportunity.
Rome wasn’t built in a day. And neither is true wealth that lasts.
Article sources
We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines.
CBC (1); Government of Canada (2); RBC (3); Securian Canada (4); CAFC (5, 6, 8, 9); Lethbridge Police Department (7)
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Brett Surbey is a corporate paralegal with KMSC Law LLP and freelance writer who has written for Yahoo Finance Canada, Success Magazine, Publishers Weekly, U.S. News & World Report, Forbes Advisor and multiple academic journals. He and his family live in northern Alberta, Canada.
