Local business victim of scam
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By BETH ZUMWALT
A local business was scammed out of an approximate $300 after responding to a spam phone call.
The incident occurred Sunday, Sept.5 when the business received a phone call stating the caller was with the U.S. Marshalls Office. The caller told the employee, the Marshalls office were investigating the laundering of money by two employees, including her co-worker.
She was instructed to go to the cash register and take all the money over five-dollar bills and go to Dollar General and get a money card. The subject stayed on the phone with the employee and told her she was being followed.
The employee did as she was told, stating that the caller used a very stern voice.
When she exited the store, she told the man, there was no one waiting at her car. He told her to read him the numbers, which she did. Once that was completed, the man told her to rip the card up and then disconnected the call. Pieces of the card were later found near the store entry.
The employee returned to the business and met with the store manager, who called police.
“That’s the way these guys work,” Michael Starman, Pittsfield Police Chief, said. “They prey on the very old and the very young.”
Starman said it is important for anyone of any age to remember that is not the way governmental agencies work.
“They will not call you,” he said. “They will always send a letter or in some cases send a law enforcement officer, which should have full identification. If in doubt about someone trying to secure your valuables, information or gain entry into your home, call law enforcement immediately.”
