Scammers ask for money on behalf of wounded Douglas County deputy

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo., - A lot of people are stepping up and trying to help Douglas County Sheriff's Detective Dan Brite.

Brite was shot by a suicidal man earlier this month and is still in critical condition.

Now, scammers are trying to get their hands on some of the money meant to help him.

The Sheriff's Office says these scammers are saying two things:

First, they’re telling people that they have a warrant for their arrest and in order to clear it, they need to pick up a green dot card or iTunes gift card.

The Sheriff’s Office said the scammers are asking people for dollar amounts ranging from $500 to $2000.

Detectives said the minute you read them the number on the card, you’ve already been scammed.

“It’s at that time when we would start asking questions, for example, what’s the name of your supervisor, what is specifically the warrant for, what’s the docket number, what’s the warrant number and start asking individual questions back,” said Sgt. Jeff Engel.  “The Douglas County Sheriff’s Office is not going to solicit anyone to pay a warrant with a green dot card, an iTunes card or any other sorts of information, we may tell you and inform you that there is a warrant for your arrest, but we will not solicit money.”

Also, detectives said there are people calling pretending to be Det. Dan Brite and asking for donations to help his family in his recovery. 

If you do want to help out, there are several ways to donate directly through the Sheriff’s Office.

The Sheriff's Office is holding a blood drive at the substation in Highlands Ranch on September 23rd.

You can also donate online to the Douglas County Sheriff's Office fallen Officer Fund online.

A GoFundMe accountwas set up to help the wounded deputy.