A WA woman tricked into being used as a mule to transfer stolen goods overseas said she met her alleged scammer on an online dating site.
Geraldton woman 'Tracey' told Radio 6PR on Wednesday she had been speaking to a man who said he lived in Sydney for about a month before he started sending her up to three parcels a day.
"He was saying all the right things, that he loved me and whatever else and then he started sending me parcels," she said.
"He sent me roses to start off with for Valentines Day and then he was sending me parcels everyday.
"I sent one parcel off to Bangkok, he wanted me to box it up... I did the first one and then he kept sending more, I would get two or three parcels a day.
"I asked him to stop and he wouldn't do that, he wouldn't stop."
Tracey said the parcels were filled with brand-new products including shirts, expensive watches and cameras.
Alarm bells rang for the 49-year-old when she saw one of the parcel receipts said the items had been purchased with a credit card under her name.
She said she had never owned a credit card.
"I brought all the stuff to the police station and they've got it all in their hands now," she said.
"I'm glad it's all over... I didn't want anyone else going through the same thing."
Tracey said the man, who called himself Mark Gavin Cole, had planned to visit her, assumedly to retrieve the parcels, but never showed up.
Consumer Protection said similar scams had been reported in Karratha and Albany, with a Karratha woman accepting computers from a man she met online with instructions to send them to Malaysia.
Consumer Protection acting Commissioner David Hillyard said the tactic of scam victims being used as mules was a disturbing twist.
"Normally scam victims are used as money mules by being asked to receive funds into their bank account and to then send the money to other accounts, usually overseas," he said.
"But the receiving and sending of goods purchased fraudulently by stolen or fake credit cards appears to be a new tactic that the community should be made aware of.
"Alarm bells should ring for people who are asked to receive and then pass on goods by people they don't know or have only met online."
Major Fraud Detective Senior Sergeant Steve Potter warned victims who agreed to pass on money or goods could be taking part in criminal activity.
"Victims who become involved in transferring goods or money for criminals could risk prosecution, so people should be extremely wary when people they have not met in person begin to ask for favours such as these," he said.
"This method is clearly designed to influence innocent people to unknowingly facilitate their criminal operations while the offenders remain anonymous or hide behind fake or stolen identities. We urge everyone to be mindful of this new tactic and contact authorities if they have been asked to receive and transfer goods or money."
People who suspect they are being used by scammers as mules or who have been communicating with Mark Gavin Cole should contact WA ScamNet by email wascamnet@commerce.wa.gov.au or by calling 1300 30 40 54, or contact Crimestoppers on 1800 333 000.
More information on scams is available at www.scamnet.wa.gov.au.
