Graham Jaehnig/Daily Mining Gazette The Keweenaw County Sheriff’s Office reports a large number of complaints of phone scams in reference to UPPCO. Personnel strong advise recipients of phone calls to not give financial information or credit card numbers over the phone.

Undersheriff Curt Pennala of the Keweenaw County Sheriff’s Department would like the public to be aware of phone scams that seem to abound in the county, one in particular claiming to be the Upper Peninsula Power Company.

Pennala said the standard approach the caller is using is to identify himself as being being from UPPCO, and telling people they have an outstanding balance, and if they do not pay in full over the phone, technicians will arrive within half an hour to disconnect their electric service.

“UPPCO doesn’t operate that way,” Pennala said. “They will send several notices and warnings well in advance.”

Phone scams are common, the undersheriff said, and they are easy to recognize. Scammers will usually have a way of convincing the victim to give money over the phone.

“Don’t give any personal information over the phone,” Pennala said, “and don’t provide any account or bank information, such as credit card numbers or account numbers.”

It can also help in confusing the scammer by asking to send information through the mail.

The UPPCO phone scams appear to be localized to Keweenaw County, as agencies contacted in Houghton County have received no complaints of UPPCO-related calls.

Chief Wayne Butler of the Hancock Police Department said his department has not received any complaints of phone scams “in quite a while,” particularly involving UPPCO, so he would assume it is probably a local individual.

“Ours are usually IRS phone scams,” Butler said.

With UPPCO, he added, when people request technician service, they will be given a four-hour window in which to expect a technician to arrive.

“If they’re saying a technician will be at your house within a half an hour, that’s your fist clue right there,” said Butler.

Houghton County Sheriff’s Office said it has no information of phone scams beyond their usual IRS scams that are common to Hancock and Houghton agencies. The Michigan State Police Calumet Post, similarly reports not having received any phone scam reports.