Government official asking for money on the phone? It's a scam

Scammers increasingly are impersonating police and federal agents in an attempt to swindle unsuspecting victims by preying on their trust of law enforcement.

According to John Breyault, a fraud expert with the National Consumers League, posing as government agents is a classic fraud tactic.

“The appeal to fraudsters is that somebody who is impersonating law enforcement seems more trustworthy,” Breyault said. “This is far too common.”

Reports of business and government imposter scams climbed from 316,000 to 487,000 between 2020 and 2023, according to the Federal Trade Commission. Last year, impersonation-related losses topped $1.1 billion — triple the figure in 2020 — and scammers of all types stole a record $10 billion.

Pamela, 75, of Buffalo Township, who asked TribLive to withhold her last name out of fear of being targeted again, said she nearly was defrauded by scammers posing as township police Chief Tim Derringer and a Federal Trade Commission field agent. She reported the incident Monday to Buffalo Township police.

“It scared the bejeezus out of me when he said he’s an officer from the Federal Trade Commission,” Pamela said.

Anyone who receives suspicious phone calls from law enforcement should confirm their legitimacy with police in person by visiting their local police station or calling their county’s 911 center, Derringer said.

“If they have any doubts, they could have the officer respond to their residence to verify,” he said.

Pamela’s nightmarish day started with an innocuous call to what she believed was the Etsy customer support line, which she found online using a general search. A figurine she purchased from the e-commerce site to place on her fiance’s grave arrived with the head broken off.

Unbeknownst to Pamela at the time, Etsy does not have a publicly posted customer support line and only accepts requests through its online help center. An Etsy spokesperson told TribLive that the company urges buyers and sellers to avoid using phone numbers circulating online purportedly connecting them to an Etsy representative.

The scammer claimed that Etsy had three accounts under Pamela’s name. When Pamela confirmed she had not purchased $12,000 in diamonds and gold necklaces, she was transferred to another phony company representative, then the so-called federal agent.

The “agent” told Pamela she was suspected of using drug money to pay for various purchases and demanded $6,000 in recompense. This tipped off Pamela. She said she had lost nearly $14,000 in a scam about six years ago.

“It was a blessing in disguise,” Pamela said. “If I wouldn’t have gone through that with those other (scammers) … I probably would have taken the money out of the bank.”

Pamela said she stayed on the line with the scammers to gather as much information as possible for police. The so-called agent upped his demands when Pamela told him that she had arrived at the bank, asking her to convert the funds afterward to Bitcoin.

“He said, ‘Do not tell the bank tellers what you’re doing. This is a federal matter, and they cannot know what you’re doing,’ ” Pamela said.

She said she also received multiple calls from someone spoofing a Buffalo Township police phone number and impersonating Derringer, threatening arrest. At this point, Pamela had arrived at the police station to confirm her suspicions about the scam.

She said she hung up and filed a report.

The incident marked the latest event locally in which cybercriminals have posed as law enforcement and public safety agencies.

The Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office announced Wednesday that a Munhall woman lost $28,000 to a caller identifying themselves as Cmdr. Leo O’Neill, who oversees the office’s courts division. At least one scammer has placed calls pretending to be Allegheny County Sheriff Kevin Kraus — including to Kraus himself.

“If you receive a call like this and you feel even the slightest bit of confusion … hang up and call our office or call any law enforcement agency,” Kraus said.

Springdale residents received calls recently soliciting money for the borough’s volunteer fire company. The caller claimed the department was in financial trouble — another scam, according to an April 24 social media post from Springdale police.

Even law enforcement agencies can be targeted.

A fraudster recently accessed the Buffalo Township Police Department’s security system and contacted other law enforcement agencies seeking sensitive information, though technology specialists at the department prevented any harm, Derringer said.

“Trying to stay a step ahead of all this scamming stuff, it’s becoming more and more difficult,” Derringer said.