It may be the season for giving, but just make sure you aren't giving to scammers. That’s the warning from Fairfield police who issued an online alert for the second time in less than two months about scammers impersonating federal agents.
According to police, at least four residents have lost more than $500,000 to scams that began with a call, text or email—often warning of identity theft.
“They were saying that they were from the Federal Trade Commission and from the Department of the Treasury,” explained Capt. Antonio Granata.
The criminals used real officials' names and provided badge numbers, according to police.
“Then what they'll do to create legitimacy is they'll say a local police officer will call them,” Granata told News 12.
Police said in recent cases, the scammers spoofed the police department's number and posed as an actual officer, convincing the victim they were part of a federal investigation and needed to comply. Requests included cash, gold bars and cryptocurrency.
“Red flags should go up at that point,” Granata stated. “There’s no legitimate law enforcement agency on the federal side or the state side that's going to ask you to go get cryptocurrency or ask you to get gold bars.”
To try and prevent people from being preyed on, police have been holding monthly scam talks at senior centers and assisted living facilities, since older people tend to be the most vulnerable. But they want to remind the public that anyone can be fooled.
“We've gotten ahead of it a little bit,” said Granata.
But there have still been new victims. Police said just recently a woman was instructed to change bank accounts, obtain a new Social Security number and withdraw $50,000 in cash as part of an alleged federal investigation. She packaged the money following specific instructions and handed it over to a person connected with the scammers, according to police.
“People literally come to your doorstep,” Granata explained.
After that cash transfer, the victim was then instructed to buy $80,000 worth of gold, according to police. They said the scam stopped when a local jewelry store recognized the situation was suspicious and suggested the victim contact the police. They hope that by sharing what happened, they can protect other people from the same outcome.
“It's important to us. It's important to our community, and obviously, we're spending countless hours investigating these crimes, and there have been a ton of people who are out hundreds of thousands of dollars,” stated Granata.
Police said if you’re ever unsure whether something is a scam, call them directly. They reminded the public not to rely on caller ID alone since phone numbers can be spoofed to appear legitimate, including numbers that look like law enforcement or government agencies.