Sweepstakes scam targets residents

MINDEN, Nev. " The Douglas County Sheriff's Office is investigating another fraudulent sweepstakes scam.

Spokesman Sgt. Jim Halsey said the scam was perpetrated by an unknown suspect who sent a letter advising the victim they had been selected as a grand prize winner of a sweepstakes drawing by Financial Clearing Services, Inc., a fraudulent business.

The letter claimed the recipient was selected through a ballot drawn from a Readers Digest or National Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes database, reportedly part of an international lottery commission.

The letter advised the recipient they won a cash prize of $100,000 to $500,000.

The letter is accompanied by a partial prize check of several thousand dollars. The recipient is to call a telephone number provided in the letter for further instructions.

Calls made by the Douglas County Sheriff's Office were unanswered.

"The phone number rings through to a message recorder, with an answering machine stating for the caller to leave their name and telephone number for a call back," Halsey said. "Numerous messages left by Douglas County Sheriff's Office representatives have never been returned. The checks have been confirmed to be fraudulent by a local banking institution."

He said the scam had a new twist in that the suspect does not direct the intended victim to immediately deposit the check into their personal bank account, and then immediately send back a portion of the deposit.

"This letter advises the intended victim to call a telephone number in order to obtain additional instructions on how to proceed," he said.

"Methods used by scam artists vary, but the intended result of separating you from your money remains a constant," said Sheriff Ron Pierini. "To protect yourself, never respond to unsolicited correspondence. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is, for example, winning a sweepstakes never entered."

Never deposit unexpected funds from any source, nor pay money to an unknown or unsolicited entity based upon some promise of monetary return or prize, Pierini said.