BC Federation of Police Officers Telemarketing Fundraiser

RCMP are NOT Associated With
The BC Federation of Police Officers

The BC Federation of Police Officers is apparently a legitimate association of police officers who do raise funds for a variety of causes, however, they are NOT associated with the RCMP in any fashion whatsoever.

The following is a press release from the RCMP dated last Sept. which shows the concern over how this association represents itself is nothing new.

2007-09-05 11:41 PDT

Vancouver, BC: RCMP Detachments throughout BC are fielding complaints and questions from members of the public who have been called about making a donation to the BC Federation of Police Officers. During the calls the individuals have allegedly indicated the money will go towards families of RCMP officers who have died in the line of duty.

The RCMP want to make it clear that they are in no way associated to the BC Federation of Police officers and that this organization does not support any RCMP sponsored or run programs or initiatives. It appears that the BC Federation of Police Officers is conducting legitimate telephone solicitations for donations. However, like any request for donations, the public is encourage to research the organization or charity before donating.

The RCMP are taking these complaints from the public very seriously and have been in contact with executives from the BC Federation of Police Officers to make them aware of the complaints. The RCMP will continue to monitor the situation very closely and would encourage anyone to make a complaint to their local police department or the Better Business Bureau if they have any concerns associated to the request for financial donations. For further information on legitimacy of any charitable organization, please visit the Better Business Bureau website at www.bbb.org

If you visit the website of the BC Federation of Police Officers it is obvious they are trying to portray themselves as being strongly linked to the RCMP. This deception alone, would make me suspect of them as an organization.

The image above of the 'Thin Blue Line' would certainly give the appearance they are an arm of the RCMP right down to the logo for the BC MPPA which appears to be the offical logo for the respected RCMP.

The following is another clarification released by the RCMP in the past, this one going back to April 2005:

RCMP Issue Clarification

2005-04-18

British Columbia: In light of increasing public inquiries concerning the B.C. Federation of Police Officers, the RCMP would like to provide clarification:

The BC Federation of Police Officers is a registered society which is made up of Police Officers within the province of British Columbia. It raises funds through a variety of methods, one of which is tele-marketing or telephone solicitation. Currently the BC Federation of Police Officers is conducting legitimate telephone solicitations for donations.

If you have any questions about the BC Federation of Police Officers you can visit their website at www.bcfedpolice.com . Should you receive a call soliciting funds and want to raise a concern regarding their methods of operation please note the time and date of the telephone solicitation and advise the BC Federation of Police Officers at the web site noted above. The Federation will review the call upon your request for appropriate handling.

The RCMP would like to advise the public that the RCMP is not officially associated to the BC Federation of Police Officers, nor is the Federation a sanctioned affiliate to the RCMP . The BC Federation of Police Officers IS NOT collecting funds for direction to the ?E? Division RCMP Members Memorial or on the behalf of RCMP community programs.

The public should be advised that the RCMP does not engage in telephone solicitations of any kind to raise funds.

Police advise the public to be vigilant and to question those collecting funds for any cause. There are resources including the Better Business Bureau that the public can utilize to verify legitimacy of any fund raising initiatives.

If you visit the website of the BC Federation of Police Officers take a close look at the projects they give money to and take a look at the dates of their involvement. Personally I would need to know far more about how much money they actually raise, and how much of is is paid to 'administrators' before I would even consider giving them any money.

Remember some organizations really only exist to provide a job for the administrators of the organization and a very small percentage of monies raised actually goes to the cause presented to the public.

They obviously are legitimate enough that the RCMP have not charged them with being fraudulent and they have been in operation for a number of years now. However, you have to wonder why they are not required to clearly state they are NOT associated with the RCMP.

If you choose to send them some money, that of course is your choice, however, be aware the money may not be going where you think it is.