Another scam cropping up in the Niagara region - this time the police are warning of the 'overpayment scam.'
Scammers target people selling items online and say they'd like to buy the item. The con artist then writes a cheque with additional funds they say will be used to 'pay the movers.'
Once the cheque is cashed it can be a few days before a bank or credit union discovers the cheque is fake. In that time, the scammer will have already contacted the seller and asked for an e-transfer so they can pay the movers themselves.
Sometimes the swindler will simply write the cheque for too much and then ask for the money back, claiming it was a mistake.