By William Moore
Daily Journal
TUPELO – People in Northeast Mississippi have been getting phone calls saying they have won the Jamaican lottery or won a cruise to Jamaica. It is a scam.
“It’s like the old saying. If it looks too good to be true, it probably is,” said Lt. Jerry Davis, a detective with the Tupelo Police Department. “The secret shopper and the Jamaican lottery are the ones we deal with the most.
“It has been a month or so since someone filed a report, but not everyone reports the calls.”
According to the Attorney General’s office, the scams fall into two categories. In one, the person has won something of value but needs to pay a “processing fee” in order to receive the prize. In the other, the person is sent a check and told to deposit the money and then wire back a processing fee or taxes. The person then discovers the check was counterfeit.
“The scammers usually prey on the elderly and can be pretty convincing,” said Davis. “I once had to go to a lady’s house with someone from the Attorney General’s office to explain to her that it was a scam. She just wouldn’t believe me.
“She had already sent in a couple thousand dollars. If they ever get their hooks in you, they will keep calling.”
People are urged to use caution and never send money to someone they don’t know.
Anyone with concerns whether something is legitimate or a scam, or suspect that they have become a victim of a scam, can contact the Tupelo Police Department at 841-6546 or the Consumer Protection Division of the Attorney General’s Office at 1-800-281-4418.
william.moore@journalinc.com