Sheldon, Iowa — Scammers continue to come up with crafty ways to separate you from your well-earned money.
Recently, a scam has surfaced in which people are asked to buy gift cards. Sometimes the request even appears to be from someone you know, as a favor for someone you know, or on be on behalf of someone you know.
Sheldon Police Officer Jett Korver says that the recent instance of the scam in Sheldon is targeted at members of the First Reformed and St. Patrick’s Catholic churches, and Korver says, “Members of both churches are reporting getting a text message from someone pretending to be their pastor asking them to send gift cards.” He says the police department is aware. He requests that if a member of one of the other churches in town receives a similar message, that they call the Sheldon Police Department.
Authorities remind you that anytime you are asked to buy gift cards such as iTunes, GreenDot MoneyPak, or other prepaid cards, it’s likely a scam. The most recent scam we’ve heard of involves taking a picture of the cards you purchased and sending it via text, email, or some other electronic messenger service. Other scams have you send the scammer the numbers on the cards. When one of these things is done, the scammer can then use the money you put on the cards, you are out however much money you spent on the cards, and the money is likely not going where you were led to believe it was. The problem is since it was done via anonymous gift cards, there is no way to track the transaction.
Authorities urge you to be wary anytime you are asked to deal with prepaid cards, Western Union, or send cash to someone. None of these can be tracked, and once your money is gone, it’s gone without a trace.
