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Last updated on July 5th, 2024 at 11:40 am
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I’ve had a few calls on my cellphone from a number listed as National Police and Trooper Association. I found this a bit suspicious because as far as I know, many law enforcement agencies don’t ask for donations.
I had a call today from the same association but they didn’t leave a message.
the caller
The call was from a Los Angles county area code.
(323) 336-8871
It was listed on my cellphone’s caller ID as National Police and Trooper Association.
As I mentioned there was no message left.
call examples
I’ve had similar calls like this one to my landline phone. I’m not sure if they are a real person or a scripted robot caller. I do notice that it seems as soon as you say hello they launch into their script.
Most claim that donations help local police departments with things such as equipment and funds for slain officers.
That’s all great but when they ask for as little as $25 USD that’s when I know it’s a bit off. I also had one person tell me they had already sent out a mailer for my donation. I kept telling them I could not give and they kept at it.
That’s also when I thought it was a computer-generated call because the caller kept at it that if i could donate $25 that would be great.
Robo killer has a great example of a recorded call.
what i found out
Doing a Google search i found out the National Police and Trooper Association is real. They seem to be based in Florida. But I also noticed they are linked to the IUPA. The International Union of Police Associations. Which is what they are listed as under the charity info listed via NPTA.
looking at the states listed under the NPTA donation page there are very few states listed. Most are in the east. California isn’t even one of them. So that makes me even more suspicious. Also being US based why would they need to be included in the International Union of Poice Associations? Does this sound odd to anyone else?
i found complaints
I found a lot of complaints about the calls. Most were listed for the IUPA. But they were still the same. A male caller asked for a donation.
You can check these out via the BBB (Better Business Bureau) I even found some via Yelp.
How is this a scam
I think this is a scam because many times the caller always sounds the same. From the calls, I’ve answered. They sometimes ask for a Tom or Jason. I also find it odd because they jump right into the script and don’t let you get a word in. I also think it’s a scam because many law enforcement agencies don’t call and ask for money.
They have also called from various numbers and always ask for the same donation amounts from $25 and up. Or they tell you they have sent out a mailer so you can donate quickly over the phone.
This could be a phishing scam for credit card or banking info.
What you can do
If you get a call like this one you can always ask as many questions as you see fit. Or don’t answer the call. You can also contact your local police department’s non-emergency number and ask if this is a scam.
Don’t fall for these types of scams.
