Toronto police have
received close to a dozen complaints about panhandling imposters
The sight of Buddhist
monks asking for money on the streets of Toronto is ringing alarm bells for
some, especially when it appears certain men with shaved heads and coloured
robes are not what they seem.
Toronto police have
received nearly a dozen complaints about men dressed as monks who have been
asking passerby for money and demanding more when donations are offered.
Const. Bill Chan told
CBC News that is not the way that real Buddhist monks solicit donations.
And while the men seen
in Toronto might be dressed like monks, “actually, they are not,” Chan said.
Most of the incidents
reported to police have occurred in Toronto’s Chinatown neighbourhood, though
Chan said in at least one case, these individuals were spotted at the Eaton
Centre.
Hong Yan told CBC News
she saw a suspicious monk outside her shop on Spadina Avenue this past spring.
She saw the monk
stopping people on the street. While she kept walking, Yan said she couldn’t
tell if the monk was real or not.
Cursing families
Real monks who walk
around Chinatown do accept donations, but will never beg for money.
Venerable Jue Qian of
Mississauga's Fo Guang Shan Temple said she's heard stories about the fake
monks becoming agitated if people refuse them money.
"They get angry
and they start to scold or they start to curse them," she said. "They
don't even curse [just] them. They curse their family members."
Chan said people should
avoid giving money to strangers, even if they appear to be actual monks.
And Chan said people
should realize they are under no obligation to speak to people who approach
them on the street.
He said that anyone
who has been a victim of this apparent scam should contact police.
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