A Kelowna woman is sounding the alarm after discovering a scam letter her mother received claiming she had won the Set For Life Lottery.
The letter her elderly mother received last week in the mail claims to have been sent by Set For Life, which is run by BCLC.
It says she had won $950,000 after matching all six numbers in a Nov. 4 draw.
Problem is, Set For Life is a scratch ticket lottery; numbers are not drawn.
The letter also includes a return address in Kamloops which is a residential home and not the BCLC office.
It also includes a phone number to call in the Metro Toronto area.
"My mom is 91 and she doesn't have internet, and if I hadn't Googled this stuff, who knows," the woman told Castanet News.
The letter further claims the money is being held in escrow in an American chartered bank, and the recipient must call the number included by Dec. 10 in order to access the winnings.
The letter is signed by Steve Martin, purported to be president of operations. The only Steve Martin Castanet could find linked to BCLC was a B.C. man who won a $16 million Lotto Max jackpot a decade ago.
In an email to Castanet, BCLC officials say they never inform players they have won a prize through the mail.
"This applies to all our products, including instant games such as Set For Life. Players who win prizes from lottery products purchased at retail locations must claim their prize in accordance with BCLC’s prize-claim processes," a statement says.
"Where there is suspected criminal activity, we advise them to contact police. Individuals can also report suspected fraudulent activity to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC at 1-888-495-8501)."
