Be alert, careful to avoid scams

The information superhighway is a magnificent conduit for knowledge and exploitation. Anything in its purest form is usually a good thing. However, in our modern world of malevolent behavior, sometimes good intent is lacking.

The Internet offers almost anyone anything, with a click of a button. Look at the world, news, communicate, explore, vacation and learn. Or one click later, get defrauded leaving a bank account balance of zero.

The FBI reports numerous scams: telemarketing fraud, Nigerian letter or “419” fraud, identity theft, advance fee schemes, health care fraud/health insurance fraud, redemption/straw man/bond fraud, letter of credit fraud, prime bank note fraud, Ponzi schemes, pyramid schemes, Internet auction fraud, nondelivery of merchandise, credit card fraud, investment fraud and business fraud. The list goes on.

Any of these scams can be perpetrated over the Internet. Additionally, these frauds can be committed via mail, phone or even in person. So, please do not get suckered into giving away your livelihood.

Let’s roll. “Control, 269, we’ll be 10-8.”

Oct. 12. Officers were dispatched to the industrial area regarding suspicious subjects. They appear to be “stripping” parts off a motor home. We meet the two Mr. John Does. Yes, that was their names, since they refused to properly identify themselves. Officers advise the nefarious nitwits that an investigation is being conducted in reference to the allegation of their possible theft. The “Doe” brothers become belligerent. Would someone like to tell me what occurs next? Right! The Doe brothers are booked into jail for obstructing and resisting. You may get a punch in, but we will win.

Oct. 13. We get dispatched to a home on the lake side of town, near Temple Rock Road, regarding a domestic disturbance. The caller’s teenage son is attempting to kill them, the caller says. That’s a tense couple of minutes for everyone involved. Everyone in the residence is accounted for, except the irrational son. We see him running down the street. Bad idea! We subdue the suspect. The suspect, is not simply a teenager, he’s 18; that’s an adult. We have one in custody for domestic violence.

Oct. 14. A resident comes to the Boulder City Police Department lobby to report a phone call. The resident said the “criminal division of the IRS” was calling to collect back taxes. The alert resident realized the IRS never makes phone calls in these types of matters. The resident confronts the caller, but the nonfluent-English-speaking caller demands information. Can you hear the silence? The resident comes to advise us. Information noted. Great job on the resident’s attentiveness to a scam.

Oct. 15. Many times theft is about opportunity. A vehicle’s owner reports unknown subjects stole a tool chest from the bed of his pickup, parked off Elm Street. It occurred during the past couple of hours. Tools to thieves are like candy to a child. Please attempt to secure your belongings. Report taken.

Oct. 16. Several calls come in regarding a possible DUI driver all over the road. The vehicle is off U.S. Highway 93 and into the median several times. We catch up to stop the car and make contact with Mr. Out-of-It. The driver, who has a lengthy criminal history, can barely stand. Thank goodness, we get him off the road before he kills someone.

Oct. 17. If you’re a known, admitted and arrested narcotics abuser, seller and courier, don’t wear bright red pants. Undercover officers spot the subject be-bopping (i.e., jaywalking) across the street. The hand-to-hand exchange is the ol’ transaction they were expecting to see; it wasn’t a handshake. Mr. Red Pants’ arrest record now achieves a milestone with 30 arrests. When does it stop?

Oct. 18. Why do people crave bar-laced views? One DUI arrest, one theft arrest, one domestic violence arrest, two warrant arrests, and two battery arrests all within eight hours. Oh yeah, and one partridge in a pear tree. What a day!

It was a phenomenal week. Oh, one more thing before we go. Parents, when you drop your child off at school, do not park in the green zone. That area is for loading and unloading only. The parking ticket is $195! I’d rather you keep the money and spend it on the kids.

As always, keep it real Boulder City!

Officer Jeffrey Grasso is a 11-year veteran of the Boulder City Police Department. He previously served as a police officer in south Florida for four years.