HOWELL, Mich. (WXYZ) — The Livingston County Sheriff's Office is warning the public after a resident reported they were contacted by two people posing as officers who were attempting to get money for fake outstanding warrants.
The sheriff's department received the report on Tuesday, March 5. A resident said he was contacted over the phone by two individuals posing as a "lieutenant David Miller" and "Chief Deputy David Aungst." Neither of these "people" are employees of the Livingston County Sheriff's Office, a press release states.
The suspects then told the resident he had outstanding warrants for his arrest. In order to take care of the warrants, he would have to purchase prepaid gift cards in set amounts.
Sheriff's deputies say to avoid being scammed, follow these rules:
1. Never give out any personal information such as name, date of birth, social security number or financial information by phone, email or through internet.
2. DO not call the scammer via the caller ID or the number they provide. They can often manipulate caller ID and numbers to make it look like it's a local call.
3. Verify the identity of anyone claiming to be the police, IRS other government officials by researching and, or, contacting the agency direct.
4. Never provide ANY form of payment or transfer money to anyone wanting immediate payment especially in the form of prepaid gift cards, green dot cards, iTunes cards, or MoneyPak reloadable cards. These are not payment options for any legitimate business or government entity.
5. These types of scams often target our elderly population but anyone can be a victim. There are often consistent themes such as there are warrants for your arrest, a loved one has been arrested and needs bond money, you missed jury duty and have fines or owe money to the IRS.
