Virginia State Police
RICHMOND, Va. (CBS19 NEWS) — The Virginia State Police says it has received several calls from people concerning a scam.
According to a post on the VSP’s Facebook page, the scammers claim to be with VSP, with a local police department or the U.S. Department of Justice.
People who have fallen victim to this scam say the caller is very convincing with their claims to be a police officer, investigator or trooper.
Additionally, the Caller ID has been showing a VSP phone number in these instances.
The scammer tells the victim that their identity has been stolen or there is a warrant out for their arrest and the victim needs to send money immediately to address the situation.
The scammer will say to transfer or wire the money to an account or ask the victim to purchase gift cards.
Victims say the scammers have provided personal information about them and then threatened them if they do not pay immediately.
However, VSP says law enforcement agencies do not contact citizens by phone to request payment or to clear an arrest warrant. They also do not request payment with gift cards.
If an unsolicited call comes in, even one that appears to be from an official or legitimate number, police say to never provide credit card or other account information over the phone.
