October 17, 2023

The Perrysburg Police Division has received several reports of people receiving a voicemail from someone pretending to be a Perrysburg police officer with the warrant and citation division. The voicemail advises them to call back due to an urgent matter. Police say that there is no such division and that this fake phone call has resulted in one victim being scammed out of hundreds of dollars.

The scammer convinced the victim that they owed fines due to missing a subpoena to testify in court as an expert witness. The victim believed the scammer because it aligns with the type of work that they do. The victim was instructed to pay the fines to avoid being arrested and was told to use Greendot Visa gift cards because the police department does not process debit or credit card transactions.   

Police advise that they do not make phone calls to solicit anything, especially fines that need to be paid. They also warn that most reputable businesses would not ask for payment using Greendot Visa gift cards. If you receive a similar phone call and suspect that you are being scammed, police say to hang up and report the phone call to them. The Perrysburg Police Division can be reached at 419-872-8001.