BEND, OR -- Bend Police have seen a big increase in scam reports. "We’ve had 336 reported, so far this year, to us," says Chief Mike Krantz, "We had 253 all of last year. So, we have nearly 100 increased just for calls." He says the number of victims or near-victims is likely much higher, since not everyone calls it in, "Could be because they didn’t consider it a big enough of an issue, or maybe they didn’t get fully scammed, or maybe they’re embarrassed."

In some cases, those loses aren't small, "We’ve had people lose upwards of $100,000 when they report it to us, by the time they stop the scam and report it to us. Some people catch it upfront and realize it’s a scam, and they don’t proceed. They don’t buy gift cards or go to a Bitcoin ATM or transfer money or wire money, which are all ways it gets done." 

Recently, fraudsters even posed as the chief, "We had some calls of people claiming to be me, and calling people and telling them that if they didn’t pay a fine immediately over a wire transfer, then they would have a warrant for their arrest. I am not calling people asking for money transfers."

Krantz says out-of-the-blue requests for wire transfers or payments via Zelle or gift card should always be questioned. "You should get numbers and call back. You should call the police, if you have a question about it. But never give money, never go to the bank and withdraw money and send a wire unless you know exactly what you’re wiring to and who."

And if you think you've fallen victim to a scam, Krantz urges you to report it to law enforcement.