Scammers targeting Lake County residents, pretending to be police officers to gain sensitive information
LAKE COUNTY, Ill. - Police say scammers are calling Lake County residents, pretending to be police officers and informing the caller they have an active warrant out for their arrest in order to get valuable information from the resident.
The Lake County Sheriff's Office says the scammer will claim to be Sergeant Michael Cope and spoof their caller identification number to make it appear as if they are calling from the sheriff's office.
The scammer will then order the victim to purchase gift cards and provide the gift card numbers/pins to the scammer to satisfy the warrant.
The scammer has also asked victims for their social security numbers, banking information and other sensitive information, the sheriff's office said.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office is reminding the community that the government will never call and order you to pay money in the form of gift cards.
If a person claims to be a government agency, call that government agency first to determine the validity of the call, before discussing anything.
If you have been the victim of a scam, contact your local law-enforcement.