Police: Beware of telephone scam
By DAVE PAYNE Sr.Police are warning people to be aware of two telephone scams that were reported in the Parkersburg area Friday.
Wood County Sheriff Ken Merritt said there have been reports of two related telephone scams in the area Friday. In one, callers pitch "investment" opportunities and offer to consolidate credit cards on the other.
Both calls appear on caller ID displays as a seemingly American phone number, but the calls are being made from Jamaica, Merritt said.
"I don't know if anybody has been taken yet, but they've called several people in the area. The people were told (in the investment scheme) that a local person would come to pick up money, but then they would call back and say 'we're all tied up, we can't make it' and that they needed a money order and to give them the number on the money order. People need to realize that no reputable company is going to call them and say if people give them $4,000 they will double it in six months," Merritt said.
In the other scheme, the callers offered very low rates on credit card consolidation.
"They would say, 'look, we can give you six or seven percent on these cards,' then they ask for the person's name, then ask for the expiration date on the credit card, social security number, the number on the card. We think it's the same people doing both schemes," Merritt said.
Parkersburg police Chief Gerald Board said seniors are especially vulnerable to such schemes.
"Older people are much more trusting than others and these people pick on the elderly. A lot of elderly people think that a man's word seals the deal, but that's not the way it is anymore," he said.
There's no need to be worried about being rude, simply hang up, when contacted by a possible scammer, Board said.
"Never give information to a random phone caller. Just beware that when people try to get money from you and promise big returns, it's not usually an honest transaction. Before you release any personal information, know who you're dealing with. Don't do that over the phone. Normally, once a scammer has this information, there is no way to track it. You need to know as much as you can before entering into any kind of deal," Board said.
