Crime & Safety
Brookline Police Warn Of Officer Impersonation Scam
"Our officers will never ask you for any financial information over the phone," the department said in a social media post.
BROOKLINE, MA — A Brookline resident listened to her gut and avoided becoming another victim of a financial scam, police said on Thursday.
In a social media post, the Brookline Police Department said a woman received a call showing the department's non-emergency phone number: (617)-730-2222. When she answered, someone identifying himself as "Officer Turner" informed her that her bank account had been hacked.
When the caller asked the woman for her bank account information, she sensed something was up and called the department instead.
Find out what's happening in Brooklinefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Police said, first, that the department does not employ an Officer Turner. Further, Brookline police officers will never ask a resident to share financial information over the phone.
Anyone who receives a suspicious call from someone claiming to be a Brookline officer is urged to hang up, call the non-emergency line (617-730-2222) and ask to speak to the officer who purportedly made the original call.
Find out what's happening in Brooklinefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
View this post on InstagramToday one of our beloved residents received a telephone call “from” (617)-730-2222/Brookline Police/Animal Control. When the resident answered the phone, the caller identified himself as a Brookline Police Officer, "Officer Turner", who was calling to advise her that her bank account was hacked. He then asked her for her account information. The resident did not give "Officer Turner" any pertinent information as she felt the call was suspicious. 1. We do not have an Officer Turner. 2. Our officers will never ask you for any financial information over the phone. If we are calling you, we have your information. If we know your account was hacked, we will have that number. 3. If you are ever uncertain, we ask you to do the following out of an abundance of caution: 1. Hang up and call our non-emergency line: (617) 730-2222 2. Ask for one of our incredible Dispatchers to connect you to the officer you were just speaking with. At this time, we are unable to connect you with “Officer Turner” nor can we recommend you watch this film. Tom Hanks, we forgive you, but don’t ever to this to us again. -Your friends at the Brookline Police Department
A post shared by Brookline Police (@brooklinemapd) on Sep 2, 2020 at 1:32pm PDT
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