Irwin police warning residents of telephone scam seeking money for department

Irwin police said they have received word that scammers are calling area residents claiming to be collecting money for the borough police department, Chief Dan Wensel said.

“That’s absolutely not true. We are not soliciting donations for anything,” Wensel said.

He also noted that police officers do not take any money directly for citations, fines or warrants.

The police department posted a warning about the scheme on the borough’s Facebook page.

“The caller supposedly claims to be a policeman and we are not involved in any kind of solicitation,” Wensel said.

Wensel said he was alerted to the scheme by neighboring North Huntingdon police. That department received information from a local resident who reported receiving a solicitation call.

“As soon as I learned about it, I posted warning to area residents,” Wensel said.

If someone receives such a call, Wensel said they should hang up and call borough police at 724-864-3103 to speak with an officer.