Dearborn Restaurant Owner Swindled in DTE Energy Scam

A 30-year-old restaurant owner in Dearborn says she was scammed out of $1,000 after answering a phone call from a man claiming to represent DTE Energy.

According to police reports, the woman informed officers that around 9:58 p.m. on June 27, an unidentified man called Fuego Mexican Grill, located at 7040 Schaefer Road, and asked to speak to the owner.

The man identified himself as a DTE employee and said he only spoke Spanish. He told the owner that the restaurant was past due on energy payments and informed her that DTE planned to shut off power at the restaurant unless a payment was made by telephone immediately.

The suspect instructed the restaurant owner to purchase two $500 Green Dot Paypal cards from Walgreens and provide the scratch off numbers after the cards were activated.

The woman told officers that she believed the threat was legitimate because the caller knew personal information about her and the restaurant.

After the woman provided the cards' activation numbers, the suspect asked for more money. The woman and her husband asked the caller how much money was owed and asked him to provide an account number for DTE. After the caller refused, the woman hung up and discovered a zero balance on both PayPal cards before calling police.

Dearborn police officers are investigating calls from a 804-858-4398 phone number. No further information is available.