Suburban Woman Gets Scam Call Claiming To Be “Local Police Chief”

Scams are big business all across America, but sometimes it seems like Illinois gets more than its fair share.

And one of the latest examples is particularly creepy because the person supposedly making the call is someone most of us would never suspect of being involved in a criminal con game: the local Chief of Police.

Thanks to Patch.com for the inspiration for this one.

woman talking on the phone

It All Got Started With A Phone Call

A Palos Park woman in her 70s recently began receiving calls from someone claiming to be Palos Park Police Chief Joe Miller. The caller told her she was suspected of money laundering and would have to pay money to avoid being arrested.

There was just one little problem: it wasn't the police chief.

According to Patch, the scammer had spoofed the Palos Park Police Department's actual phone number, making the call appear legitimate on the victim's caller ID. The woman, who is luckily very active in the community and apparently knows Chief Miller well, recognized the scam immediately. Chief Miller said the calls began over the weekend and continued relentlessly.

A person holding a cell phone in their hand

The Local Police Angle Is What Makes This Scam So Nasty...And Successful

Illinois police departments have been warning about versions of this scam, in which criminals impersonate police officers, government officials, banks and utility companies. Some threaten victims with arrest, while others demand gift cards, cryptocurrency, wire transfers or money through payment apps.

The Illinois State Police even warns about a “Badge Come Back” scam, in which someone posing as a police officer convinces a victim to withdraw money supposedly to help catch a criminal.

So here's the golden rule: If someone claiming to be the police calls and demands money, hang up.

Then call the police department yourself using a number you find independently, not one supplied by the caller.

Real police officers may call you for some reason someday, but the difference is that they just aren't going to demand that you pay your way out of jail over the phone.