Rock Hill business reports $2,500 flim-flam call

An employee of Monkey and Mermaids on Herlong Avenue told Rock Hill police someone tried to collect by money for an unpaid Duke Power bill. But the business gets its electricty from Rock Hill.

On March 12, the caller demanded the business pay $2,469 and an $85 reconnect fee or their power would be turned off, according to a Rock Hill police report.

The employee knew it was a scam because the business doesn’t use Duke Power.

Duke Energy has reported a number of flim-flam attempts recently. The utility advises its customers to contact them and local law enforcement if fraudulent activity is suspected.

Occasionally, Duke Energy said it may calls customers to discuss an account. If the utility calls it will provide customers with information known only to the customer and Duke Energy to validate that the call is legitimate.

Customers who feel uncomfortable providing personal information by phone, or they believe the call is a scam, can call Duke Energy at 800-777-9898.

Duke Energy customers who have delinquent accounts receive multiple notifications from the company over the course of several weeks prior to electric service disconnection. There is never just a single notification before disconnection.

This story was originally published March 20, 2015 at 1:33 PM with the headline "Rock Hill business reports $2,500 flim-flam call."