x
Breaking News
More () »

Stearns County residents warned of phone scam

The sheriff's office says a caller impersonating an actual department sergeant asks for personal information to settle unpaid fines that are past due.

ST. CLOUD, Minn. — Stearns County residents are being warned about a phone scam that sounds awfully familiar - for good reason. 

The sheriff's office says it has received multiple reports from people saying they have been called by someone claiming to be a Stearns County sergeant. The caller requests personal information, legal documents and other data, sometimes using intimidation and telling the resident they need to comply in order to deal with past-due, unpaid fines. 

"These calls are fraudulent and are aimed to illicit your personal information or money," sheriff's officials say in a news release. "All the (residents) correctly called our office directly, where we were able to confirm the calls were in fact a scam."

The methods used by the fraudulent callers in Stearns County are extremely similar to a scam recently that targeted residents of Burnsville. Callers there used the name of an actual sergeant on the Burnsville Police Department. 

Anyone in Stearns County who is targeted by scammers is asked to immediately call the sheriff's office at 320-251-4240. 

WATCH MORE ON KARE 11+

Download the free KARE 11+ app for Roku, Fire TV, and other smart TV platforms to watch more from KARE 11 anytime! The KARE 11+ app includes live streams of all of KARE 11's newscasts. You'll also find on-demand replays of newscasts; the latest from KARE 11 Investigates, Breaking the News and the Land of 10,000 Stories; exclusive programs like Verify and HeartThreads; and Minnesota sports talk from our partners at Locked On Minnesota. 


Watch more local news:

Watch the latest local news from the Twin Cities and across Minnesota in our YouTube playlist:

 

 

Before You Leave, Check This Out