There’s another phone scam in the County of Grimes, and the Grimes County Sheriff’s Office wants you to be on the lookout for fake calls from the National Publishers Clearinghouse.
Investigator Kindale Pittman says the scammers start by telling the victim they’ve won a big prize. And to receive those prizes, Pittman says the caller says the victim needs to purchase a gift card for between $25 and $100 and provide the card information over the phone to receive a free vehicle and a large sum of money.
Pittman says most of those reporting these calls say their caller ID indicates they’re from a local number, when they’re actually just “spoof” telephone numbers that you can’t call back.
He says they’ve even had reports of calls from Jamaican phone numbers posing as the National Publisher’s Clearing house and reports of scam callers posing as Entergy representatives.
If you receive one of these calls, Pittman tells Navasota News it’s extremely important not give any personal information or follow any instructions in order not to become a victim yourself. Verify the caller’s identity, demand a valid reason for them calling, get a call-back number, hang up and call them back.
For more, call Grimes County Sheriff’s Office at 936-873-2151 or the Navasota P.D. at 936-825-6410.
