HPDPS Warns of Scammer Pretending To Be an Officer

Highland Park Department of Safety (HPDPS) learned Wednesday of a phone scam where the caller posed as a Highland Park police officer and demanded payment on a warrant for failing to appear for jury duty.

According to recipients of the phone scam, the caller stated he was with, “Highland Park Police Department” located at “4700 Drexel Drive.”

The intended victims stated that the scammer sounded legitimate but when pressed for specific information about the warrant became vague, evasive, and increasingly irritated.

Additional details of the scam include:

(1) claims of an urgent police matter that must be resolved today,

(2) claims that the intended victim would be arrested immediately for non-payment,

(3) the use of formal-sounding jargon to sell the hoax.

HPDPS is advising the community to be mindful of this version of an impersonation phone scam.

An additional component of this type of scam is the method of payment: the caller will demand payment from a pre-paid debit card or wire transfer. These are red flags.

Should you receive a scam phone call similar to the above scenario, one where the caller falsely claims to be with “Highland Park Police Department,” do not provide the caller with any personal information, and contact dispatch at 214-521-5000.

William Taylor

William Taylor, editor of Park Cities People and Preston Hollow People, shares a name and a birthday with his dad and a love for community journalism with his colleagues at People Newspapers. He joined the staff in 2016 after more than 25 years working for daily newspapers in such places as Alexandria, Louisiana; Baton Rouge; McKinney; San Angelo; and Sherman, though not in anywhere near that order. A city manager once told him that “city government is the best government” because of its potential to improve the lives of its residents. William still enjoys covering municipal government and many other topics. Follow him on Twitter @Seminarydropout. He apologizes in advance to the Joneses for any angry Tweets that might slip out about the Dallas Cowboys during the NFL season. You also can reach him at william.taylor@peoplenewspapers.com. For the latest news, click here to sign up for our newsletter.

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