On September 11, 80-year-old Madeleine Gervais was robbed in Ottawa's west finish.
It occurred in the Loblaws parking lot in College Square, when she was approached by a person and a lady who insisted to assist her load her groceries into her automotive.
One of them stood in entrance of her, serving to to load the automobile, whereas the second individual stood behind her, covertly fishing by her backpack, swiping her pockets.
“I went back in the car. I didn’t think anything of it. I just told my husband, ‘They were so nice and polite,’ and then we went back home,” stated Gervais.
The subsequent day, Gervais says she went on-line to verify her accounts and observed an extended listing of fraudulent transactions on her bank cards. In complete, she was out roughly $10,000.
“I went to the bank right away and they checked. It was true, there was money taken from personal account and my business account. There was also money taken from my credit card too,” she stated.
“All of my personal information was in my wallet. My social insurance number, my health card, my driver’s license, and other cards.”
Gervais is in the method of being reimbursed by her financial institution and the bank card firm, however she additionally misplaced a major amount of money and nonetheless needs to see the suspects held accountable.
Madeleine Gervais tells CTV News Ottawa a person and a lady helped her load her groceries into her automotive at College Square in Ottawa on Sept. 11. Gervais stated the following day she observed $10,000 in fraudulent transactions on her bank cards. (Kimberley Johnson/CTV News Ottawa)
On Sept. 12, she known as her daughter, Valerie Gervais, for assist submitting a report with the Ottawa Police Service.
“We called the hotline and waited almost 40 minutes and then we were told we had to file it online,” Valerie stated.
“So, I did what I thought was the proper way to file it online. I listed all of the stuff that was stolen under one report and mentioned that my mother is visually impaired, and then we waited about a week, and we didn’t hear anything back.”
Valerie then known as police as soon as once more and was informed they would want to file a person report for every stolen card.
So, the pair went again on-line, and filed the mandatory studies.
“We wait again for another week, and we don’t hear anything back. This time, my mom forwards me an email she got because she can’t read it, and it says, ‘we may or may not investigate your case.’ It was just a standard email.” stated Valerie.
Valerie known as police. She says she was assured somebody could be investigating, however one other week glided by with no communication from police.
That’s when she and her sister, Christine, turned to social media.
“It was kind of like a ‘woe is me, no one is calling my mom back’ type of post, and we got probably 40 replies of other people saying this had happened to them and that they haven’t spoken to police officer in six months,” Valerie stated.
“Obviously we would like those people to get caught, but I find it really disheartening to think that these people could get away with it.”
CTV News reached out to the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) for touch upon Gervais' state of affairs, however a police spokesperson responded a number of days later with data pertaining to a separate case, claiming Gervais’ state of affairs was resolved and the case was closed. Police later clarified they'd blended up two circumstances.
The Gervais household says after CTV News contacted police, an investigator lastly known as them again and knowledgeable them the investigation continues.
However, the theft befell final month and Madeleine Gervais’ daughters say they're dropping religion in the police service.
“It is very, very frustrating and quite frankly, it doesn’t make us feel any safer in this city,” stated Christine.
“I can get a speeding ticket, that’s great. They’ll stop us for that, but somebody gets $10,000 stolen and they do nothing.”
A police spokesperson tells CTV News that there are millions of comparable circumstances in their queue at any given time and that investigators are doing what they will to clear the backlog.
Police say the investigation stays open, and an investigator touched base with Gervais on Monday to supply an replace.
“We understand that these incidents can be distressing for all involved, and we thank them for their patience,” police stated in a press release. “With a large number of investigations underway across the city, each takes time to receive the attention it needs to reach a resolution or exhaust all investigative leads.”
