A federal RCMP unit says it is working to protect British Columbians from overseas investment scams by targeting the people who are helping those fraudsters to move their ill-gotten money.
Money mules assist criminals by receiving and moving illegally-acquired money, so that the funds can't be traced directly back to the fraudsters themselves. In some cases, the money mules know what they are doing and will get a cut of the profits, but in other cases they are tricked into believing they are helping out a friend or romantic partner or performing a task for an online job.
RCMP say the 10 individuals they warned last month were identified by the B.C. Securities Commission after they uncovered information showing each person had sent or received money or cryptocurrency that came from from the victims of investment fraud.