DENVER — Roughly a dozen police departments or sheriff's offices in Colorado have issued warnings throughout 2017 to residents within their jurisdictions saying scammers are using their names to prey on the vulnerable or gullible.
The scam isn't new, and it isn't sophisticated, but scammers continue to use the method because victims continue to fall for it. It's easy for them to do, and hard for police to trace.
Scammers will call a victim pretending to be a law enforcement official. They will then say there is a warrant out for the victim's arrest due to a missed court date, jury duty or other obligation. The only way they say will satisfy the warrant is a payment, sometimes in totals of up to $5,000 or more.
The obvious way to know it is a scam is when the scammer asks for payment in the form of gift cards, frequently prepaid credit cards.
Adams County, Jefferson County, Denver Police, Larimer County are just a few of many departments which have released reports regarding the continuing scams.
Police say the best way to avoid falling for the scam is to be skeptical and never be afraid of calling your local police department before making any decisions.
They add, police will never call and demand money from you.
