Crime & Safety

PG&E Phone Scam Targets Petaluma Businesses

Police in Petaluma are warning residents not to fall for a phone scam demanding payment for a supposedly delinquent PG&E account.

Petaluma police are warning of a scam that tries to trick businesspeople into paying for a supposedly delinquent PG&E account using a prepaid debit card over the phone.

Here's how police describe the scam:

"An unknown suspect in the past week has contacted at least two businesses in Petaluma and told the businesses their PG&E accounts were delinquent and needed immediate payment to avoid service interruption. The unknown caller instructed both businesses to purchase Green Dot Debit Cards and make their payments by telephone with the debit card. One of the businesses made the payment and when they later called PG&E they learned their account was current and PG&E had no knowledge of the transactions. Petaluma and Sonoma County residents should be aware of this and contact PG&E directly if they are advised they have a delinquent account and payment is requested by telephone." 

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