Police department warns of scam calls
The Susanville Police Department is warning residents of false calls claiming the abduction of a family member in order to extort funds. If one were to receive a call like this, residents are urged to contact law enforcement before transferring money or releasing personal information.
“Over the last 24 hours we have handled two different cases of people receiving a phone call from an international number, telling people a family member of theirs has been abducted. The caller is threatening that they will hurt the person if they do not receive funds immediately. They are asking the person who receives the call to stay on the phone while the person secures the funds and wires the funds to an account in Mexico,” read a statement from the police department.
The statement explained the caller would try to extract personal information, like your address, social security, date of birth, account info and other details.
“Information as this makes it much more convenient for a person to steal another’s identity,” the statement continued.
“We have been in contact with the F.B.I. and have confirmed this is not a just a problem in our area, but all over the country. These abduction calls received in the last 24 hours reported to SPD have been from the County Code of 52, which is Mexico,” read the statement.
“Although we cannot confirm every call is false, please contact law enforcement before you send any funds to anyone who you do not know personally, under any circumstances. Do not provide personal information of any sort, especially account information or your social security number.
“Unfortunately, these types of cases have become a constant in our society. Scammers spend all their day trying to trick, lie or extort money from innocent people. Please be aware of them and help others to be aware as well,” the statement read.
