Chinese fraudsters’ latest way to scam victims – carrier pigeon

Chinese fraudsters have reverted to an ancient form of sending messages rather than relying on the internet or mobile phones for their latest scam – a carrier pigeon, according to a newspaper report.

A woman from Nanjing in Jiangsu province found a “lucky draw” scratchcard attached to a pigeon on her way to work on Tuesday morning, according to the Yangtse Evening Post.

After she scratched the surface of the card, a message revealed that she had won 280,000 yuan (US$41,600) as part of a lucky draw offered by a Sichuan province-based electrical equipment company.

First prize was a BMW car, the card said.

However, to claim her prize the woman was told he she needed to pay 50,000 yuan in “tax”.

The woman, who was not named in the report, realised it was a scam and reported it to the police.

The carrier pigeon, the report said, was released.