Police are investigating an incident in which a man attempted to pay a homeless person to get vaccinated under his name. The incident occurred soon after the providence of Alberta announced their vaccine passports.
According to the RCMP, a man visited Wapiti House, a homeless shelter in Grande Prairie in northern Alberta, on September 17th and offered money to someone willing to receive the COVID-19 vaccination under his identity.
The RCMP have confirmed that they are investigating the issue but have yet to release details regarding the terms of the deal in question – whether the person agreed to the deal, how much money was offered, or the identities of either person involved.
Constable Chantelle Kelley of the Alberta RCMP spoke to VICE World News:
“According to the case file, witnesses overheard the conversation between the victim and suspect, and reported it. The victim also reported it.”
Constable Chantelle Kelley, VICE World News
The homeless shelter reported the incident as well but has yet to confirm whether or not the victim accepted the deal.
One worker of Wapiti House, who wished to remain anonymous, also confirmed they heard the situation.
“There was a lot of talk within the shelter that someone was looking to pay someone to do it [get the vaccine]. And rumor was that one resident did it”.
Case Worker, VICE World News
The executive director of the shelter, Kathy Lambert, opened up about the recent measures put into place in order to prevent any future incident of this sort.
“We are actively monitoring who is coming on the property. But unfortunately, we can’t control what is happening in the community, but we can monitor what happens on the property.”
Kathy Lambert, VICE World News
Alberta Health Services (AHS) has openly stated that they take instances of fraud very seriously and has asked everyone going to receive the COVID-19 vaccine to provide one piece of government-issued identification. If anyone lacks such identification, the AHS has other methods in place to confirm the person’s identity.
