December 7, 2013
On Saturday, December 07, 2013 the Fort Myers Police Department received calls from two local businesses that reported a telephone scam. They stated that an unknown caller claimed to be with Florida Power and Light and threatened to shut the power off unless payment was made immediately with a credit card or a prepaid gift card. Thankfully, the businesses didn’t fall for the scam, verified their account status with FPL, and then called police.
Police also made contact with FPL. They will never call and ask for credit card information or take prepaid cards as payment. In fact, they do not ask for any personal information from you unless you initiate contact with them. Police remind citizens to be wary of all unsolicited phone calls, texts or emails asking for money or personal information. For more information on how to identify or report a scam visit the following link provided by the Federal Trade Commission:
http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0076-telemarketing-scams
Shelly Flynn
Public Information Officer
Fort Myers Police Department
www.fmpolice.com
239-321-7721