BIloxi PD warns of phone scams
Published 2:15 pm Sunday, January 16, 2022
The Biloxi Police Department is alerting the public of a “warrant” phone scam where scammers claim to be an officer with the Biloxi Police Department. They call unsuspecting victims, telling them they have outstanding warrants and need to pay fine amounts to prevent arrest.
During these calls, scammers attempt to collect a fine in lieu of arrest by requesting a wire transfer of funds or purchase of prepaid debit cards, such as Green Dot cards or gift cards. The caller may use a variety of tactics to sound credible, identifying themselves as a law enforcement official. They may provide information like badge numbers, case numbers, and names of actual law enforcement officials. They may also spoof their phone numbers to appear on Caller ID as if they are calling from a law enforcement agency.
The Biloxi Police Department would like to remind the public, officers with the agency will never ask for credit/debit card/gift card numbers, wire transfers, or bank information for any purpose and not to divulge personal or financial information to unknown callers.
The Biloxi Police Department is asking anyone with information regarding this incident or any other incident to please contact the Biloxi Police Department Criminal Investigation Division (228) 435-6112, Biloxi Police Department Dispatch (228) 392-0641, Biloxi Police Criminal Intelligence Unit ciu@biloxi.ms.us, Mississippi Crime Stoppers (877) 787-5898, or submit a tip online at mscoastcrimestoppers.com