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Police warn of scammers posing as law enforcement officials - Manistee News Advocate

Cell phone users in Michigan are experiencing more frequent scam phone calls, and in Mecosta County scam calls were reported involving requests for money for alleged arrest warrants. 
Cell phone users in Michigan are experiencing more frequent scam phone calls, and in Mecosta County scam calls were reported involving requests for money for alleged arrest warrants.

MECOSTA COUNTY — Scam calls are becoming more common among Michigan phone users, and reports of a call regarding arrest warrants is among the latest incarnation.

On Feb. 25, the Osceola County Sheriff's Office posted a status on Facebook informing the community that they had received several reports of scam calls from a local area code.

“The individual posed as a member of the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office and tries to get payment for warrants or says you will have a warrant if you do not make a payment to them,” the post read. “The scammer(s) will mention names of actual employees of the Sheriff’s Office to sound more convincing. This is a scam.”

William Sell, an officer with the Big Rapids Department of Public Safety, warned residents that the calls can take different forms.

“We take several calls a month of people either reporting scam calls or reporting they have been a victim of scam calls,” Sell said.

“These calls are frequently from somebody posing as a police officer, IRS agent, or sheriff’s deputy saying the person is in trouble and needs to pay money to keep from getting a warrant for their arrest. We also have taken calls from people saying their grandchild, brother or any other family member has been arrested in another state and needs bail money.

“Don’t answer phone calls where you don’t know the number, let them go to voicemail and return the call. If you do answer, ask them if you can call them back. Never give out bank account information or social security numbers to subjects over the telephone.”

Sell said falling prey to these scams can be disastrous.

“You can lose your hard-earned money (to scammers),” Sell said. “These scammers will frequently keep contacting you and ask you to send more and more money, threatening you with jail time. Police officers will NEVER ask for money from you over the phone. They will not ask for you to purchase Google Play, iTunes, or gift cards to pay for anything.’

The calls are an example of ‘imposter scams,’ in which a scammer will try to impersonate an individual you trust or an employee of an institution.

  • If you fell prey to a scammer and paid them, you do have some options.
  • If you paid a scammer using a money transfer app, contact the company behind the app. If the app is linked to a credit card or debit card, contact your credit card company or bank first.
  • Update your computer’s security software if you gave a scammer remote access to your computer, then run a scan and delete anything it identifies as a problem.
  • If you give your username and password to a scammer, change your password right away. If you use the same password for other accounts or sites, change it there as well.
  • If you gave a scammer your Social Security number, visit IdentityTheft.gov to learn how to monitor your credit report to see if your SSN is being misused.
  • If someone calls and offers to help you recover money that you have already lost, don’t give them money or personal information. You may be dealing with a fake refund scam.

Sell said that while options exist, tracking these calls is a challenge for law enforcement.

“We take an incident report and follow up to the greatest extent we can,” Sell said. “Unfortunately, a lot of these calls come from spoofed numbers. Spoofing is when scammers manipulate the caller ID so that it appears the call is coming from a local number or even the police department’s number. A lot of these calls originate from out of the country.

“If you fall victim to a scam, file a police report,” he added. “Keep your information on social media private. Never give out bank account information or social security numbers to subjects over the telephone. Register your number on the National Do Not Call registry.”

For more information on scam calls or to report a scam, visit the FCC’s website, https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov/.



source: https://www.manisteenews.com/local-news/article/Warrant-scam-calls-reported-in-Mecosta-County-16960663.php

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