CLINTON, Miss. (WJTV) – Clinton police said they’ve experienced an increase in complaints by victims who have been receiving phone calls from scammers impersonating employees of the police department.

The scammer poses as a Clinton police officer and calls the victim by manipulating the caller ID to reflect the CPD non-emergency phone number, (601) 924-5252. 

The caller accuses the victim of owing money for old fines and informs the victim a warrant has been issued for their arrest unless the fines are rectified. The caller asks for banking information to pay the fine and, in most cases, tells the victim to obtain a Green Dot Money Pack card, which is then used to scam them out of thousands of dollars.

Investigators said the scammers even have a fake answering service identifying themselves as law enforcement officials with the Clinton Police Department, asking for the victim to leave a message so their call can be returned.

Officials with the department said they will never ask for personal banking information or money over the phone. If you receive a call like the incident reported above, treat the call as a scam and notify law enforcement.