Any legitimate organization will never ask you to give cash to someone at your door.
That’s the message City of Hilliard police officers are sending residents after investigating crimes that involve a courier.
Scammers pose as representatives of government, financial institutions, and technology companies, among others. They persuade a victim, often a senior citizen, that their bank accounts or computer have been hacked, and they are at risk of being targeted unless they give their cash to someone for “safekeeping.”
In some cases, victims are encouraged to “wire” their money to the scammer. In other cases, they’re instructed to give it to a stranger who appears at their door step and can recite an arranged “password.”
About half of the crimes being investigated by Hilliard detectives are related to theft and fraud, said Detective Brandon Long.
“Unfortunately, we continue to investigate a lot of scams here in Hilliard – many of which involve a courier,” said Detective Long. “Sometimes victims are asked to deposit money in an ATM, which you should also never do.”
In one recent case, a resident who was accessing online banking was scammed out of $40,000 after the scammer posed as their bank claiming to have detected fraudulent activity. The resident received a phone call a short time later from a woman claiming to be a bank teller encouraging him to withdraw the cash and “keep it safe” by giving it to a courier who arrived later in the evening.
In another case, a resident received calls from multiple coordinating scammers claiming to be technology and bank representatives involved in an investigation. The scammers coached the resident to withdraw $20,000 in cash and ignore warnings from legitimate bank employees attempting to help. The resident followed the scammer’s directions to give the cash to a courier later that evening.
“If you’re unsure if you’re being scammed, please talk to a trusted family member, friend, or give us a call,” said Detective Long. “Smart people fall victim to these criminal tricksters every day, and we want to keep our residents safe.”
