Concord Police Warn of MoneyGram Phone Scam

The Concord Police Department wants to alert the public about a phone scam that was reported over the weekend, according to a press statement.

A Concord resident reported that on March 5, she was contacted by a male subject claiming to be an officer from the Keene, NH Police Department. The suspect (“officer”) told the complainant that there was a warrant for her arrest. According to the suspect, the warrant was issued as a result of a complaint filed by a past-employer.

The suspect told the complainant that he would close the warrant if she sent him a quantity of cash. The phone number that showed on the complainant’s caller ID was “603-357-9815” (which is the number to the Keene, NH Police Department.)

The complainant sent a quantity of cash via MoneyGram to a “pre-paid” credit card. The complainant said that after she sent the first quantity of money to the “officer” he told her she would have to send additional money for him to “close the warrant.” The complainant became suspicious and researched the number “603-357-9815.” She confirmed this number was a number for the Keene Police Department. She sent additional money however eventually called Keene Police directly. The department informed her that they that this was a scam and that they would never solicit cash to “close” a warrant.

Investigators believe the suspect used some type of “spoofing” technology to disguise his true phone number as that of Keene Police Department’s.

The Keene, NH Police Department had received several complaints about this type of scam and issued a press release this past January (2015).

Concord PD is asking that if any member of the public receives a similar type of call to notify the local police department directly. The police want the public to know that at no time will any police department “close out” a warrant in this manner. The police also want the public to be aware of scams that employ the use of such technology as “spoofing” which can disguise phone numbers and Internet addresses.

Some simple steps to avoid getting scammed as provided by the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Consumer Protection are:

• Unsolicited calls and email requesting money are almost always a scam
• Never provide personal information to unknown people.
• Never wire money to people you do not know.
• Don’t trust caller ID to verify someone identity. Caller IDs are easily manipulated to deceive.

Concord Police ask that anyone with information regarding this matter to please call them at 603-225-8600 or the Concord Regional Crimeline at 603-226-3100. They can also contact the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Unit at 271-3643 or doj.nh.gov.