'Odious': They’d do it to their own families
'Odious': They’d do it to their own familiesThinkstock

A suspected fraud artist is targeting Jewish Holocaust survivors in Canada, according to the National Post, in a "vile" and "obscene" scam. 

Survivors in Alberta and Ontario told Canadian media Thursday that they have received letters claiming they are entitled to a share of $75 million from the “Holocaust Claims Processing Office,” and requesting personal banking information.

The letters promise the funds will be transferred to a “secure numbered account,” and asks for 60 percent of the share paid up front as a transfer fee. 

“I have all secret details and necessary contacts for claim of the funds without any hitch,” reads the letter. The letters are signed by a Larry Dubali, identified as a senior partner of Tenure Consulting in New York.

Dubali, who seemed to speak with an African accent, hung up on Post representatives when asked to comment on the letters. The phone number and address on his letters are associated with complaints about telephone scams, the daily noted. 

“It’s so clear that this is a scam,” said Sara Saber-Freedman, executive vice president of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, which has notified the police, phone company and Internet provider about the scheme. She wondered if the call had been forwarded to another country. “It’s just vile. This is just odious.”

The Canadian Jewish Holocaust Survivors and Descendants organization sent its own letters to rabbis and community leaders warning about the scam. “This is an obvious attempt to defraud members of the Jewish community and should be ignored,” the letter stated.

“It’s obscene as far as I’m concerned,” said the organization’s president, Sidney Zoltak. “Does it surprise me that there are people who would do that to Holocaust survivors? They’ll do it to anybody, they’ll do it to their own family.”

This is not the first time Holocaust survivors have been the target of scammers. In 2012, a Brooklyn woman was found guilty of fraud after she attempted to steal millions from organizations arranging reparations for Holocaust survivors.