Hundreds of people from out of state have been phoning the Paso Robles Police Department over the past week, saying they received a missed call from the department. Now, police are warning the public that those missed calls are part of a scam.
According to Sgt. Steve Boyett, the scammers are using technology to mask their real identities on caller ID, posing as police departments, the IRS, and PG&E, among other legitimate agencies.
“It's a common tactic that's being used all throughout the United States where scammers will call somebody, they will spoof their telephone number to be the telephone number of the local police department, local sheriff's department, and make up some kind of bogus claim," Sgt. Boyett said.
That includes outstanding traffic fines, missed jury duty, missed court hearings, and outstanding warrants for your arrest that can all be cleared up by paying over the phone using gift cards.
Oftentimes, a real officer's name and I.D. badge are used.
“There's always a sense of urgency behind it," Boyett said. "This has to happen now. It has to happen quickly. They want to instill that fear, that sense of urgency that I must act now or else something bad is going to happen to me.”
People who have fallen for the scams have bought gift cards worth up to thousands of dollars.
Owner of Sabor and Sazón, Jordge Magdonal Jr., recalls a suspicious phone call he received with a caller ID that said "PG&E."
“I knew that we were updated on all of our bills," Magdonal said. "We keep tabs on everything from our gas to electric to our water, so just knowing that we were up-to-date with all of them and then getting a call that automatically we owed or in 15 minutes they would shut down all our gas or electric was kind of off-putting.”
Magdonal checked the PG&E bill while on the phone and asked to speak with the supervisor. The person on the other end of the phone call hung up.
Hanging up is exactly what the Paso Robles Police Department is advising citizens to do.
Sgt. Boyett says scams are getting more realistic and specific. If you're wondering if a call is a scam, hang up immediately, Google the real number of the organization you believe called you, and check that it is indeed a scam.
