CAMBRIDGE – What began as a normal Saturday night for Tiffany Masri and her husband ended with the Cambridge couple having their bank account wiped of more than $1,000.
“It happened so quick and so easy. It was such a scary situation for our family,” said Masri in an interview with CTV News.
The ordeal began after the couple ordered a pizza from the St. Andrews Street Domino’s location using the online app, opting to pay with a debit card at the door.
When the pizza arrived at their house, the man presented a debit machine to collect the payment.
“When the transaction said approved, he then asked my husband the score of the hockey game which was playing in the background, and when my husband turned he took the machine and handed him back the card,” she explained.
That’s when, Masri believes, the man switched cards with her husband.
It wasn’t until her husband tried to make a payment at Food Basics about 30 minutes later did he realize something was wrong. The transaction was declined and the name on the card wasn’t his.
Regional police say that the card given back had someone else’s name on it but was from the same bank.
Masri checked their shared bank account and realized there had been a large withdrawal, as well as a purchase made at a Petro Canada station.
“We immediately called the police and went to the Domino’s location to discuss what had happened,” she said.
Masri said she then had a chance to speak with the driver about the incident.
“He said when he pulled up along here to deliver our pizza up our stairs, he was met by a man smoking here, saying it was his pizza, and gave him cash for the delivery,” Masri explained.
She believes the man then made his way up the stairs, posing as the delivery driver.
According to Waterloo Regional Police, this is the first incident of its kind in the region, but Domino’s Pizza Canada says it’s happened many times in other parts of the country, though not recently.
“It's sad that it's how made its way to this area as well,” said Jeff Kacmarek, Vice-President of Marketing and New Product Development for Domino's Pizza Canada.
As a result, Domino’s says they're reinstating a past policy, where drivers call and identify themselves to customers, adding a call back policy specifically for customers paying cash, to verify the delivery.
“Trying more and more to contact the customer before the delivery and after the delivery,” said Kacmarek.
Meanwhile, Masri is cautioning others to be on the lookout for the signs that she missed.
“Look for the delivery uniform. Look and see if anything seems suspicious. Always do your research and make sure everything's done 100 percent to your satisfaction and safety,” warned Masri.
She believes the man that committed the fraud is East Indian with dark skin and hair, five feet ten inches tall, with an average build.
Police say the incident is still under investigation.
With reporting from Zayn Jinah
