Flower Mound police close 53 officer impersonation cases
Investigators have closed 53 impersonating a peace officer cases from indictments in Georgia in which former correctional officers are accused of providing cell phones to inmates who posed as police and contacted Flower Mound residents as part of scams.
The cases have been forwarded to the FBI for inclusion with the larger federal investigation called “Operation Ghost Guard.”
The inmates called Flower Mound residents and told them they owed money for a missed jury summons or a red light ticket. In all, inmates who posed as police collected $5,915.80 from Jan. 27, 2015 to Nov. 2, 2015, Flower Mound police said Wednesday.
In indictments unsealed last month in Georgia, federal prosecutors accused 53 people of participating in the scheme. The indictments included former Georgia Department of Corrections officers, private facility officers, civilians and inmates.
Correctional officers are accused of being bribed to smuggle contraband cellphones in the prison, the indictments say. Officers are also accused of purchasing prepaid cards for the inmates.
The inmates used their smartphones to find victims through Google search or the white pages website, posing as law enforcement agents and calling people around the country, the indictments say.
The two-year investigation revealed that guards typically earned $500 to $1,000 for smuggling a single cell phone to a prisoner, according to FBI officials.
In Flower Mound, an inmate ordered residents to go to local stores and purchase pre-paid cash cards. If residents didn’t, the inmate threatened residents with arrest and jail time, Flower Mound police said.
“After the victim purchased the cash card, the suspects had the victim read the card numbers and the cash would be transferred to the suspect,” said Capt. Wess Griffin in a Wednesday news release.
Flower Mound Detective Devin York issued subpoenas for the origins of the suspects’ cell phone calls and linked the offenses to the federal investigation of the Georgia correctional officers.
“It’s a triumph for us,” Griffin said. “But it’s also a chance for us to continue warning residents to be on alert for scams.”
Domingo Ramirez Jr.: 817-390-7763, @mingoramirezjr
Tips on scams
No government agency, local, state or federal will ever solicit payment over the phone.
- Pre-paid cash card pin numbers are the same as cash —once they are given out, they cannot be traced or recovered.
- Many criminals sound convincing. They look up information familiar to you in your area to gain credibility.
- Suspects may even “spoof” their phone numbers so that caller ID shows they are calling from a police department.
- When in doubt, hang up and call a local police department.
Source: Flower Mound police
This story was originally published February 17, 2016 at 1:21 PM with the headline "Flower Mound police close 53 officer impersonation cases."