The Pinehurst Police Department would like to warn the public about new financial scams that has come to our attention. The first scam involves an individual calling a Pinehurst resident. According to the caller the resident has won a gift card and a gas card through a sweepstakes from Wal-Mart. The caller then tells the resident they will need $3.95 for shipping and handling to send the card to the resident. The caller asks the resident to provide a credit card number to charge the $3.95 to. Wal-Mart has confirmed they are not participating in any type of sweepstakes or contests. Residents are advised not to give out any personal information out over the phone, especially credit card numbers, bank account numbers and social security account numbers. Residents are encouraged to contact the Pinehurst Police Department in the event they receive any of these types of calls.

Secondly, residents throughout the city are receiving a text message indicating that their bank account is going to be closed unless they call the number provided in the text message.  When an individual calls this number, an automated answering machine prompts him/her to enter their bank ATM/credit card number, along with other personal information.  As a result, residents are having their checking/savings accounts completely withdrawn. The area code for the phone number provided in the text is Chicago, Illinois.  However, the money is being withdrawn from ATM’s in Spain. According to the Secret Service, this is an overseas scam where the suspects target Western banking institutions and their customers. As with many financial scams of this nature, we are unable to help the victims due to the distances involved. The Secret Service is aware of this scam, but they do not have jurisdiction overseas and are not going to travel that distance for only a few thousand dollars.  Currently, Telco Credit Union is the only bank being targeted in our area.  Not only are their customers receiving this text, but non-customers as well.

There is a new phone scam originating out of Canada. This is how it is played out: A phone call is received by a Pinehurst resident and the caller identifies themselves as a police officer from a town in Canada. The caller states that they have the resident’s grandson in custody for Driving While Intoxicated. The caller states the grandson is scared to let his parents know that he has been arrested and wishes for his grandparents to post his bail. The caller instructs the Pinehurst residents to provide the police department with a credit card number in order to post the bail and get their grandson out of jail. The scary thing about this is that the caller has the real name of the grandson. NEVER, NEVER, give out your credit card or any financial information to anyone over the phone that you do not know. There is a variation of this scam in which the caller claims that the grandchild has been in an auto accident.