Tales are circulating via social media that women and girls in Burnaby are being lured, kidnapped and forced into the sex trade.
Now Burnaby RCMP has spoken out to debunk the rumours, and have issued the following statement:
“We are aware of these social media posts and to date we are unable to locate a report or investigation related to the complaint being outlined in the posts,” note Burnaby RCMP.
"We would ask that if this has occurred to anyone in Burnaby that people contact us immediately but as of right now this appears to be a post that has unfortunately been shared on social media and caused unnecessary concern to Burnaby residents."
Screenshots from this hoax offer a couple of scenarios purporting to be real accounts of kidnappings and related crimes.
One shows some plastic ties attached to two vehicles. Another talks about $100 bills with ribbons attached to them.
The posts also talk about two women who went missing in Burnaby in the past few days. In this case, while two women did walk away from a local mental health care facility, their departures were not connected to any incidents of kidnapping or sex trafficking, and one of the two has been safely located.
Burnaby RCMP add this warning: "We caution people to think twice, do some research and if they are concerned about whether this occurred or not to contact police before sharing these posts.The Burnaby RCMP is committed to public safety and would like to reassure the community, should we have received such reports an investigation would have been immediately launched and a warning issued to the public.”
