(Beaver, Pa.) The Beaver County Sheriff’s Office is reporting that they were notified by numerous callers that an individual had called them and identified himself as Lieutenant Plunkard, of the Beaver County Sheriff’s Office Civil Division. The caller then advised that this was “an initial contact on a legal matter”.
The Sheriff’s Department said that while their office does employ Lieutenant Thomas Plunkard, he has made no such calls. All of the complainants had received voice messages, with no call back number, however, the caller ID number was a Springdale, PA exchange.
Chief Deputy Paul Radatovich said in the statement that often times, when callers purport themselves to be Sheriff’s Deputies, it is to scam the recipient of the call out of money. Generally, the scammers have used lines like the following:
1. There is a warrant for your arrest because you have failed to report for court; or,
2. You must pay a bail.
The intention of the scammer is to scare the victim, with one of the aforementioned lies, into paying the amount they have claimed is owed. They are trying to access bank account information, PayPal type account number, gift card numbers or credit card numbers.
BEFORE you give anyone your personal information, always call the agency the caller purports to be. As in this case, if the caller claims that we have a warrant for you, please call the Beaver County Sheriff’s Office at 724.770.4602 or Beaver County Emergency Services at 724.775.0880.
Below is a summary of how to safeguard you from becoming the victim of any scam:
1. Under no circumstances should a resident ever provide any personal information over the phone when receiving calls. If you have any question as to the legitimacy of the call, get the individuals name and position, hang up and then obtain legitimate contact information for the company/agency, through independent means, and re-contact them. As in this case, if they say there is a warrant for your arrest in Beaver County, contact the Beaver County Sheriff’s Office.
2. NEVER provide credit card information, social security numbers, your date of birth, bank information, gift card numbers, etc. to anyone with whom you have not initiated the call.
3. Note any telephone number of the caller displayed on your caller ID. Beware, however, that many scammers “spoof” the numbers of a legitimate entity to make you think the call is from who they claim to be.
4. Document the conversation with the suspect.
5. Disconnect without providing any financial and/or personal information.
6. Criminals are able to access much of our personal information simply with the use of personal computers and Web sites.
7. If a registered sex offender receives a similar call, they are asked to contact the Pennsylvania State Police, Megan’s Law Section at 1-866-771-3170.
Please share this information with friends, relatives and neighbors in an effort to prevent them from becoming a victim.