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By Teena Monteleone

Cybercrime response

Prince Albert Police Service ‘limited in scope’ to properly investigate fraud crimes

Nov 17, 2025 | 4:55 PM

Internet fraud and cybercrimes are among the fastest-growing crime trends in the country. Prince Albert saw a 10 per cent increase in fraud cases last month. The chief of police said cyber-enabled offences are becoming increasingly more complex, and sometimes exceed the investigative capacity of the municipal police service.

“The Prince Albert Police Service right now does not have the capacity to train and make sure that people have a full toolkit when it comes to investigating cybercrimes. This takes a lot of front-end training and front-end investments in certain types of hardware and software components. For our organization, right now, we just don’t have the ability to flip that switch,” said Chief Patrick Nogier.

He pointed to a recent complaint by a member of the public who was defrauded of about $3,000 in an internet-based scam. The victim reported it to police, but because there was no imminent threat, the call was triaged through the Alternative Call Response process. Nogier admitted the file didn’t get the investigative components it should have, and the police service is working with the victim to remedy the situation.

“We do have individuals within the organization, just by virtue of their experience and their exposure, who have become accustomed to different types of fraudulent acts and how to respond. Where it gets really challenging for our organization is when those levels of fraud take on a level of complexity because it’s associated to the internet or cybercrime,” Nogier said.

What the Prince Albert Police Service can do, Nogier said, is connect victims to different reporting agencies that specialize in the crime: The National Cybercrime Coordination Centre, also known as NC3; the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre; and the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security.

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Cybercrime response

Prince Albert Police Service 'limited in scope' to properly investigate fraud crimes

Nov 17, 2025

The agencies do not provide investigative components. Nogier said you still need to report crimes to local police.

“We’ll upload our information into the national database. We may not have the response that the public really should have, but we’ll do what we can to connect those individuals, potentially at the RCMP or maybe a larger municipal agency, that has had the opportunity to invest in those capabilities.”

New scam threats

Fraud experts say it’s difficult for all organizations and law enforcement agencies to keep up to date on cybercrimes because of the rapid evolution of technology.

One of the newest trends tricking consumers this holiday season has scammers using artificial intelligence-powered fake retail websites.

On Monday, the Bank of Montreal’s financial crimes head Larry Zelvin said artificial intelligence is making it harder for financial institutions to detect fraud.

“The risks are ever-present every day all year long, but when it comes to this time of the year, ‘tis the season to steal even more. Retailers are making more money this time of year than any other, so the fraudsters are all over it as well,” Zelvin said.

Fraudsters have also been embedding malicious links in QR codes as well as digital pickpocketing, where criminals use contactless payment devices to skim data from phones.

He noted that 2.6 per cent of online transactions in Canada between Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday were flagged as fraudulent last year, a 51 per cent annual increase. He noted that older consumers are disproportionately targeted.

-With files from The Canadian Press

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teena.monteleone@pattisonmedia.com