orange county florida – Orange County Animal Services issued an alert Wednesday to inform the public about a nationwide scam that may be targeting lost pet owners in Central Florida.
Someone posing as an OCAS “representative” recently called owners who had reported their pets lost or missing, telling them they had found an injured animal matching the description and had taken it to an affiliated veterinarian. The shelter made the announcement on social media. The person then provided his PayPal account and told the pet owner that he needed to prepay for an emergency medical bill, according to the post.
According to the shelter, the scammer in the case used the name “Jack Richardson” and a fake phone number as a contact information.
Our staff will never call the public and ask for money. We also keep all animals in our care on our website so that owners can retrieve and reunite them.
Orange County Animal Services | Facebook | January 31, 4:42pm (excerpt)
The scam is affecting animal shelters across the country, the paper said.
If you receive a call from someone claiming to be an OCAS representative demanding money for a lost or injured animal, the shelter will email you directly and ask you to report the call to law enforcement.
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