BOYNTON BEACH POLICE DEPARTMENT Jeffrey S. Katz, Interim Chief of Police
Office of Media Relations 561.742.6191
For immediate release Sept. 6, 2013
100 E. Boynton Beach Blvd. Boynton Beach, FL 33425 www.bbpd.org Contact: Stephanie Slater, Public Information Officer slaters@bbfl.us 561.436.4806
Police warn public of two extortion scams Boynton Beach Police are warning the public about two extortion scams reported in recent days. The first involves criminals posing as a Drug Enforcement Administration special agent and calling victims who in many cases previously purchased drugs over the Internet or by phone. The impersonators tell their victims that purchasing drugs over the Internet or by phone is illegal, and that enforcement action will be taken again them unless they pay a fine. A Boynton Beach woman recently reported a similar incident to police. On Aug. 29, she received a phone call from a man who said he was Det. Barns from the DEA. He told her she needed to pay $3,000 to avoid being arrested. He advised her to go to the bank and put the money in a Green Dot MoneyPak, which is a reloadable debit card. He concluded by telling her to call him back once she had the money and he’d tell her where to send it. Fortunately, the woman immediately contacted Boynton Beach police and did not send any money. We want to remind the public that no DEA agent or law enforcement officer will ever contact members of the public to demand money or any other form of payment. The second scam consists of criminals calling victims and telling them their loved ones have been taken and won’t be let go until a ransom is paid. It happened to a Boynton Beach woman on Tuesday. She received a phone call from a man who said he was a drug dealer and that he had just finished beating up her husband because he owed him money. The caller told her that if she wanted to see her husband again, it would cost her $10,000. The victim said the call was made at 4 p.m., and she became worried because her husband was not home yet. She drove to the Boynton Beach Police Department to report the incident, and while here, her husband came home and called her. He said he was never harmed or in the presence of drug dealers. This scam is particularly disconcerting because of how frightening a phone call like that can be for someone to receive about a loved one. We urge anyone who receives phone calls such as these to refuse the demands and immediately report the threat to their local law enforcement agency.
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