Sheriff: Be aware of phone scammers
COEUR d'ALENE — Carlton Barwise was dubious when he picked up his landline phone this past summer to answer a call from a private number.
The 82-year-old's hesitance was justified.
A man claiming to be his oldest grandson was on the other line, saying he was in jail with a broken nose and needed bail money.
Barwise asked for a name but couldn't get it. He asked for a location, too, but the question was skirted. Soon, he handed the phone to his 59-year-old son, prompting the caller to hang up.
"He didn't want to talk to my son. He only wanted to talk to me," said Barwise, a Coeur d'Alene resident. "He said he was my oldest grandson, but I know he is down in Arizona. He was obviously trying to scam me."
These kinds of phone scams have continued in the area, according to the Kootenai County Sheriff's Office, prompting the agency to issue a statement alerting residents.
"Victims receive a telephone call from a scammer claiming to be their grandson or granddaughter from the phone number (223) 921-3741," the statement read. "They claim that they are being held in court because of their involvement in an auto accident in or near Salt Lake City.
"The scammer also provides the victim with a phony case number and states their lawyer will be calling you. Victims then receive a second call from a person claiming to be lawyer and using the name ‘Wayne Spencer’ from Legal Aid Salt Lake City, normally using the phone number (920) 659-6219 from Appleton, Wis. The scam attorney next requests you send money for your grandson or granddaughter’s release at 200 E. Third St. Salt Lake City Court House. If the scammer is asked why he is calling from Wisconsin instead of Utah, he states he's using a private phone."
Authorities urge the recipients of these types of scams to verify the caller's information and to first check with other relatives to confirm the status of their grandchildren. Conducting a web search of the phone number and calling the agency or jurisdiction in which the grandchild is supposedly in custody is also recommended.
Scammers are also making calls claiming to be the Internal Revenue Service, claiming it has filed lawsuits and arrest warrants against potential victims.
"The caller or recording will provide a telephone number for you to call. Do not call the number, this is a scam," the sheriff's office's statement read. "Victims have also received calls from people claiming they are employed by the IRS asking for personal information to include your name, address, and Social Security number. This too is another scam. First and foremost, the IRS will not initially call you. If there is an issue with your taxes, they will send you a letter first, not a call on your telephone."
These aren't the only types of scams, either.
Sidney Blomquist, an 83-year-old widow in Hayden, claims to have been the target of other swindling since signing up for a Publisher's Clearinghouse membership last year.
Last summer, a man Blomquist said had a foreign accent called to inform her she won $25,000, but would have to meet the man at her bank to make the deposit and pay $1,000 for the prize's tax.
Julie Frase, 58, of Spirit Lake recently had a similar experience after signing up with Publisher’s Clearinghouse. Her caller told her she was chosen to receive $7,600 from the “U.S. Government Grant Department.” The caller told Frase she would first have to send $250 to cover the taxes. When Frase questioned why she had to send money first, the caller hung up on her.
Blomquist said she doesn’t think she’ll ever be old enough to fall for that kind of scam.
"He wanted me to understand that he was a devout Christian and his family was devout Christians,” Blomquist said. “I said 'Oh, that's nice.’ They really prey on you."