Following the report of an elaborate scam perpetrated on a county resident, Allegan County Prosecuting Attorney Myrene Koch advises residents to be wary of unsolicited phone calls or other communications from unknowns, especially during the holiday season. “In this particular fraud action, the scammers claimed to represent a federal agency trying to ‘protect’ the call recipient from being charged with a felony for fraud,” Koch said. “When the call recipient became skeptical, the scammers resorted to threatening an arrest warrant, handcuffing and jail time,” she added. The purpose of the scam was to entice the recipient to remove cash from the call recipient’s bank account and send gift cards, which would be fraudulently used. “The minute a caller mentions gift cards and money, residents can be quite confident it’s a scam,” Koch cautioned. She said, if possible, residents receiving such calls should write down the phone number if it displays on the recipient’s caller id, report the details of the scam to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and, possibly, local law enforcement. The address of the FTC for reporting fraud is ReportFraud.ftc.gov. “It is disappointing that criminals are using the holiday season attempting to defraud Allegan County residents, but it is best to exercise caution to prevent loss,” Koch added. | 
