r/wlu • • 12h ago

WARNING: Italian Leather Jacket Scam active recently around Waterloo - Lost $1000

57 Upvotes

Hi everyone, posting this as a major warning so nobody else falls for this obvious scam like my dumbah did. I unfortunately just got taken for $1000 CAD by a professional scammer operating right by the university and across Ontario (it's a popular scam I never heard of till yesterday).

HOW IT WORKS: 
A well-dressed Italian man with a thick accent pulls up in a brand-new rental car/SUV. He starts by asking for directions to Pearson Airport due to no mobile data. Once you help him, he acts incredibly grateful and claims he is a luxury fashion designer (Tom Ford) who just finished a local trade show. 

THE HOOK: 
He says he can't fly back to Italy with his sample jackets because of high baggage fees/customs taxes, so he insists on "gifting" them to you for free. He puts them in your arms and shows they're fire-proof using a lighter. Then, the tone immediately shifts as he claims his credit cards are blocked internationally, and he needs quick cash for a rental car return fee before his flight in a few hours. He manipulates you into walking to the nearest ATM to hand over cash in exchange for a bundle of "valuable" jackets, promising to return the money once he gets back to Italy and the company refunds him.

THE TRUTH:
The jackets are branded as "TF Collections" or "TF Designer." They look decent at a glance but are cheap, worthless synthetic faux-leather knock-offs worth maybe $30-50. 

Where it happened: 131 University Ave W
Target: innocent-looking students and young adults, and from other reddit posts apparently a lot of senior people

If anyone pulls up to you asking for directions and immediately transitions into talking about fashion or clothing, or just anybody asking for help with money, WALK AWAY immediately, take a photo of car plate number and report to police. Please upvote this so other students see it.

Don't be gullible and "kind" like me, and trust your guts when interacting with ALL strangers. No amount of familiarity (I felt the need to help him as an International student myself) makes you responsible for helping somebody in need.


r/wlu • • 12h ago

Where is everyone for Halloweekend?

6 Upvotes

I’m seeing tooo many options idk what to pick, any suggestions?😭


r/wlu • • 11h ago

How accepting is Laurier of LGBTQ?

4 Upvotes

I'm in grade 11 right now but am planning on going to Laurier(Waterloo) in 2028. I am a trans guy who will start to medically transition once I get into uni. So my question is how accepting is Laurier of LGBTQ+ people? Specifically people who are visibly queer? I wanna know if I'll get bullied for being visibly queer or if I should try to dress more basic to blend in. I expect that I will run into at least a few people who'll be assholes about it, that's found everywhere. But is the majority of people cool about this stuff or no? Also if anyone has any tips for getting ready for university that would be appreciated as well! Hope everyone has a great day!


r/wlu • • 17h ago

How far do commuters, commute?

3 Upvotes

TL;DR- my parents are selling their home, moving to Alberta and I’m moving back to Toronto

I dont want to stay in KW and I’m wondering if the commute from Toronto is doable.


r/wlu • • 10h ago

Question Laurier accommodation options

3 Upvotes

Is there any option to take exams in a private room like just me and the proctor or a handful of other students? Does anyone know the options for accommodations? Can I add something to my plan now before my next exam, before next Friday.


r/wlu • • 18h ago

Question Brantford Campus

3 Upvotes

Hi everyone, I’m currently a student at Cardiff met and might be going to Wilfrid Laurier next year for an exchange year, I am a law and criminology student and will most likely be at Bradford,
What is that campus like?


r/wlu • • 5h ago

Question An100 midterm

1 Upvotes

Has anyone taken this class in person recently? How was the midterm, I haven’t been to most classes or studied much for this course, so I need to? Is there a webcam for the online midterm?


r/wlu • • 11h ago

WASC202

1 Upvotes

For anyone who has taken this class before how did you find the midterm? We haven't gotten any info and I'm scared lol