Police: Phone Scammers Target Fremont Residents

Fremont police are advising residents to be wary of callers claiming to be from government agencies and demanding money.

Multiple residents reported receiving calls earlier this week from suspects saying they were with the IRS or other federal agencies. The callers would tell the victims that they owe money and that they must pay immediately.

The majority of the victims are members of the South Asian Indian community, according to the Fremont Police Department.

In each of the cases, the suspects tell the victims that if they do not pay the outstanding amount right away, they will be subject to a federal criminal violation and that a police officer would come to their homes and arrest them.

The suspects tell the victims to use a money exchange service to immediately wire money, according to police. In many of the cases, the suspects tell the victims use a GreenDot MoneyPak — a card that allows customer to reload prepaid cards, add money to PayPal accounts and make payments to companies without using a bank account.

“The Fremont Police Department is not aware of any company or agency that demands payment in this manner, nor do we have the practice of dispatching officers to arrest people who have an outstanding financial debt,” Fremont police said in a statement.

A similar scam occurred on June 13 when a caller claiming to be with PG&E threatened to shut off power at popular local restaurant Country Way if they did not wire $500 via MoneyPak immediately.

Fremont police are encouraging residents to contact them if you receive similar suspicious calls.

Authorities also recommend that residents not send any money to any individual or company without verifying that the information is accurate.

“Should you receive such a call, you can complete a simple internet check on the phone number provided to you by the suspects, as it will usually display in your caller ID. You can also call the company directly to verify if you have an outstanding debt. If you are available to screen your calls, this may help indicate to the caller that no one is home and they may stop calling,” police said.

Many of the calls are place over voice over internet protocol services, making the callers difficult to trace, police said.

Anyone who has received these types of calls or anyone with information about them is urged to contact Fremont Police at 510-790-6900 or tips can be submitted by texting Tip FremontPD to 888777.