Police issue telephone scam warning

DARTMOUTH, Mass., (WPRI) - “If sounds to good to be true, then it is!”

That's the message Dartmouth police are sending out to residents regarding a telephone scam targeting the elderly.

Officials say they have been fielding numerous complaints about a new scam in their area.

Police say scammers are calling people and telling them that they have won a large amount of money. The hook is that in order to collect their winnings, the victims must first send their own money to the caller.

The victims are usually asked to send somewhere between $50-$250, either by money orders, prepaid PayPal money cards or other ways.

The victim is told that they will be reimbursed when they receive their winnings. Police say one victim was defrauded out of $7,000.

According to federal officials, the calls are being routed to the United States from either overseas or Canada.

Authorities say anyone who receives a call of this nature should never provide personal information and should immediately hang up and call police.