Package scam delivers unordered items, victims billed hundreds of dollars
Police are issuing a warning about a new scam hitting the area.
The Elkhart Police Department says it involves packages being delivered that you never ordered.
The items sent could set you back hundreds of dollars
These packages look like they are intended for the receiver.
That's because they have your name and home address, but as soon as you receive it, someone comes asking for it.
The scam begins with a package.
You know you didn't order it but then someone comes to your door claiming it's theirs.
Elkhart Police say if you receive a suspicious item hold onto it.
"The resident will give this individual the package, ... [the] individual leaves, and then the resident learns that somebody has used their personal information to order this item," said Elkhart Police Department PIO Jessica McBrier.
The victims end up being billed for these packages and they're not cheap.
One scammer's target says she was shipped an iPhone 13 Pro Max from AT&T.
It had her name on it but it was her maiden name.
"I brought it in the house and I asked my husband and said, 'Did you order something?' And he said, 'No,'" the woman said.
The Elkhart woman who wants to stay anonymous says about 5 minutes after receiving the item a man came to her door.
"He said, 'I came to pick up my package.' And my husband said, 'What package?' and he said, 'I just got an alert that my package was dropped off here. They sent it to the wrong house,'" she said.
She says they didn't give the man the package but instead jotted down his contact information.
A few days later, she received a bill saying she owes $1,500 for the phone along with paying for a 3-year contract.
They've gone to AT&T to return the phone and dispute the charges.
"I still want to know how this guy got my name? How he got a phone in my name?" the woman questioned. "How do you get my address? And how did he get the alert that a package was dropped off at my house?"
Elkhart Police say if you get an unordered package try to return it to the sender, check your bank account and report it to local law enforcement.
Police are investigating and say each report of this scam involves a man retrieving the package.
