A familiar scam is making another appearance in Alaska — someone is pretending to be an Alaska State Trooper in an attempt to get Alaskans’ money.
According to an online dispatch, troopers received a report of the scam on Monday. As in previous versions of the scam, someone impersonated a trooper during a phone call and said the victim had a warrant for his arrest and owed the agency money.
“An individual -usually a male- calls and identifies themselves as an Alaska State Trooper using various names and ranks declaring he is from the Alaska State Troopers,” troopers wrote, warning Alaskans against going along with the ruse. “The caller advises people that they have active warrants for contempt of court and they should pay their bail to him. The caller may request to meet him at a State Trooper Post. He also provides call back numbers for AST.”
Troopers said this scam has taken place in Anchorage, Fairbanks and Juneau, and could likely reach other communities as well. One recent version of the scam used a real police officer’s name — detective Avery Thompson of the Fairbanks Police Department.
“Be aware that the Alaska State Troopers will NOT ask for payment over the phone or offer to negotiate for reduced payment in lieu of arrest,” troopers wrote.
Other law enforcement agencies have confirmed that real officers will not request payment over the phone or in order to avoid arrest.
If you are concerned that you may have a warrant for your arrest, troopers recommend checking the active warrants website. If you believe you are a victim of this or other scams, file a report with your local law enforcement agency.
For more information on scams prevalent in Alaska and how to protect yourself, visit the Department of Law’s Consumer Protection Unit website.
The post Money or jail: Scammer impersonates trooper, claims to have arrest warrant appeared first on KTVA 11.
