Some businesses owned by women in the Victoria area say they are being harassed by an anonymous caller.
They told Global News that even if they don’t pick up the phone, the calls continue and it’s affecting business.
“I know the date exactly, the 27th of March was the first time this person phoned,” Jennifer Brewerton, who owns Lazy Susan’s, said.
“And then, they phoned back on the 28th.”
For the next month, the calls kept coming and Brewerton said the man on the other end spoke in a whisper.
She described it as creepy.
“What did I sell, what were the price points, things like that and that went on for a while,” Brewerton said on the nature of the calls.
And the next couple of weeks’ worth of calls, they were gradually more sexual and now, if I answer and say, ‘Lazy Susan’s,’ right away it’s a sexual comment.”
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Brewerton immediately reported the calls to the Oak Bay Police Department before posting on social media, saying, “We are not currently answering our store phone. We are being harassed by a creepy, obscene phone caller.”
It turns out, Brewerton is not alone.
“All of a sudden, four others said, ‘Hey, we know that voice, he has been phoning us, too,’” she said.
All of them have been women.
“They are all women-run and operated,” Heather Leary with the Oak Bay Business Improvement Association said.
“We know that he doesn’t call when a man answers so. He is definitely targeting women and it’s just very problematic.”
More businesses have since come forward in Oak Bay and in the Capital Regional District.
Police said they are investigating.
“When you receive these types of phone calls, the best thing you can do is hang up and once you’ve hung up, you’re dialing star five, seven, in order to trace that number, and then contact your local police department,” Insp. Andre Almeida with the Oak Bay police said.
Brewerton said she plans to install a new, more modern phone system, so she can do that.
“Really, I’m just pissed off,” she said.
“I’m just like, oh yeah, you want to say that to me — bring it on.”
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