FBI International Telemarketing Fraud Victim Assistance: The Canadian Eagle Initiative

With OVC support, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has assigned special agents to work directly with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Canadian prosecutors in Montreal, Vancouver, and Toronto to advance interdiction efforts against fraudulent, Canada-based telemarketers who target victims in the United States. It is estimated that 80 percent of victims of Canada-based telemarketing fraud are U.S. citizens. The most vulnerable victims are the elderly, who may lose savings accumulated over a lifetime and accumulate debt from which they will never recover. Perpetrators of these fraudulent schemes are known to circulate the names and personal information of "known" victims. These victims, who have already displayed a willingness to send money, are at a heightened risk for repeated victimization.

Since its inception in 1998, the initiative has been very successful. The FBI has uncovered a number of telemarketing and other fraudulent schemes and, in many cases, investigators have been able to return the money victims lost. The FBI also notifies victims about their rights and provides them with information about how to avoid fraudulent schemes. Through the Canadian Eagle Initiative, the FBI strives to provide appropriate services to victims of telemarketing fraud, to reduce the number of persons revictimized, and to minimize the emotional and financial trauma experienced by these individuals. For more information, contact OVC's Federal Assistance Division and American Indian/Alaska Natives at 202-307-5983.

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