The Ontario Police Department issued a press release in late August, advising citizens that two Ontario businesses were recently affected by a nationwide utility scam, also known as the ‘Green Dot card scam.’ On Sept. 25, Det. Jon Sigler advised that another Ontario business has been scammed, and he warned that these scams will most likely continue to happen and that people need to be aware of this issue.
Sigler described that the scam artists are targeting local restaurants and will call the restaurants during busy times of the day, claiming to be an electric company employee. The scammers will then tell the restaurants that they have an outstanding bill and if immediate payment isn’t made using a pre-paid debit card, such as a Green Dot card, then their electricity will be shut off.
Sigler said that both Johnny Biggs and Steve’s Dakota Grill were scammed in August and The Warrior Drive-In and Pizza was scammed just recently on Thursday, Sept. 25. The scam artists were successful in stealing close to $2,000 from both Steve’s Dakota and The Warrior, he said.
Mark Durbin, manager of utility communications with Ohio Edison, stated, “It’s important that our customers know that we do not accept Green Dot as a payment option; we have a number of ways—mail-in, the website, but Green Dot is not one of them…So if someone calls and says that they should pay their bill by using a Green Dot card, then they should know it’s a scam, hang up immediately and call the police.”
He added, “If they threaten immediate shut off, then people should know it’s a scam.” He explained that when an issue arises in which a customer doesn’t pay his or her bill, the electric company has an elaborate process that they go through before they suggest disconnection.
“If customers have any questions about a bill or phone call, they should call 1-800-633-4766. That is the only number that someone should call for Ohio Edison information. Some of these scammers are very sophisticated and they will call and leave another 1-800 number and will ask the customer to call that number and then [the customer] will hear someone that sounds like a customer service representative, but they need to know that that’s part of the scam, too,” he said.
Sigler said that the scam artists are somehow able to hide the location of their call. Some of the calls appear as though they are coming from Cleveland or Columbus, but one was actually coming from Miami, Florida, he said.
“And if we can get their location, it’s impossible sometimes to determine who’s behind the phone,” he said.
He described the process of tracking down the criminals, noting, “It’s not an overnight process.”
He said they start by gathering information about the companies and sending requests for subpoenas. “There’s at least a few days before get the subpoenas to get the information from the company, and once we do that, usually it’s two-month process with just paperwork and getting information. And the information typically leads to another source, so we have to get in touch with them and then send another request for a subpoena, so that’s another month or so of paperwork. And then the end result, at least up to this point, is that we can identify locations but cannot identify persons,” he explained.
“It doesn’t produce the result that it requires, but we give [the cases] the attention they deserve and make sure each of them gets filed.”
“There’s a constant battle of prioritizing cases,” he said, “so a lot of times these scams, they get put on back burner so to speak, but something like this that has affected three businesses here in Ontario and a couple elsewhere, I would think we need to get the word out because before we can identify anybody, the immediate solution or leaning toward that direction is letting know people know that these scams are happening.”
Sigler explained that when the identity of the criminal suspect is not discovered, then the case is closed until further evidence is located. If, however, the suspect is identified, then the case is presented to the county prosecutor or sent to the law director.
Both of the cases that occurred in August have since been closed and the suspect(s) has not been identified, Sigler said. The most recent case is still open and is undergoing investigation, he said.
The Green Dot card scams have been an ongoing issue for the last five to 10 years, Sigler estimated.
Gary Bishop, chief criminal prosecuting attorney with the Richland County Prosecutor’s Office, said, “We are aware of this problem. We haven’t received any complaints as of yet, but we will of course review any complaints that come in.”
He encouraged, “In the meantime, we caution people not to fall for the scam, not to go buy a green dot card and pay the money they’re attempting to exhort, and to report any attempts they receive to law enforcement and service providers.”
Kate Hanson, public information officer for the Office of Attorney General Mike DeWine, noted that the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Section has received at least 70 complaints this year in which a constituent paid using a prepaid card and the complaint involved a potential scam.
She warned of other scams, in addition to the Green Dot card scam, that people should be aware of—one of the most recent scams, she said, involves consumers receiving phone calls from individuals pretending to represent the U.S. Treasury.
In a press release issued by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office it states that the Ohio Attorney General’s Office has received approximately 50 reports of this particular scam in the last four weeks.
Most consumers do not report losing money to the U.S. Treasury imposter scams, but consumers who respond to the calls may start to receive more unsolicited calls, the release states.
Hanson advised citizens to take note that these scams are occurring and to be on their guard for the different scams that are trending.
“It’s important that our customers know that we do not accept Green Dot as a payment option; we have a number of ways—mail-in, the website, but Green Dot is not one of them,” said Mark Durbin.
