Phone scam alert: Rock Hill, York County residents warned of police impersonators

The Rock Hill Police Department received several reports of scam phone calls Wednesday from people pretending to be law enforcement officers, spokesman Capt. Mark Bollinger said.

One caller was told she had a bench warrant for her arrest, but she could pay for it by giving them her bank account and credit card information, according to a Rock Hill police report.

The woman gave the caller her information, but called her attorney, bank and police department to protect against fraud, the report says.

Another caller impersonated a York County Sheriff’s Office deputy, saying there was a warrant for his arrest, according to another Rock Hill police report.

The caller told the man to pay a $500 fine through a MoneyPak card, which the victim did, the report says.

The victim called the sheriff’s office later to ask about his warrant and was told there were no warrants for his arrest, the report says.

Bollinger said the police department may call residents about outstanding warrants, but will never ask anyone to pay fines over the phone.

Bollinger said victims of potential phone scams should take down the caller’s number, hang up and report the call to the police.

“The best thing to do is just hang up on them and not even talk to them,” he said.

This story was originally published August 24, 2017 at 12:17 PM with the headline "Phone scam alert: Rock Hill, York County residents warned of police impersonators."