HAWAII COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
CAPTAIN SAMUEL THOMAS
CRIMINAL INTELLIGENCE UNIT
PHONE: 961-2328
OCTOBER 6, 2000
MEDIA RELEASE
Big Island police are warning residents against a telephone scam in which the caller can use the victim’s telephone number to charge long-distance phone calls.
In this scam, the con artist will call the victim and identify himself as a technician for AT&T or some other phone company. The perpetrator says he is conducting a test of telephone lines and asks the victim to complete the test by pushing the nine, zero and pound sign keys — “9,” “0” and “#” — and then hanging up.
Punching in those keys and hanging up, however, allows the caller to place long-distance telephone calls billed to the victim’s telephone number.
Police said the scam recurs from time to time, frequently originating from prisoners at local jails or prisons.
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