Lynn Police: Watch out for scammer posing as cop

LYNN – Lynn police on Wednesday alerted the public to an ongoing scam in which con artists pose as police officers to receive charitable donations.On Tuesday around 7:45 p.m., police responded to a Lynn pizza shop after the owner complained someone pretended to be a police officer seeking donations for a fake charity.About four hours earlier, the pizza shop owner received a phone call from a man who said he was seeking money for the police department, police said. The victim could not recall which police department the person claimed to be affiliated with, according to police.The victim agreed to make the donation and, around 6:30 p.m., the suspect came to the pizza shop to pick up the money, police said.The suspect was described as a white male, approximately six feet tall, dressed in plain clothes. Police said he was wearing a white collared shirt with a police logo in an attempt to look like an officer.The victim handed the suspect money and the suspect gave him a receipt that read, “Boston Municipal Police Patrolmen’s Association” and had a phone number written on it to make it look real, police said.Once the suspect left, the victim got suspicious of the previous transaction and called the phone number. It was out of service.Lynn police were appalled at the audacity of the scam.”From time to time, we see these bold scams, which prey on the good will of our citizens,” Lynn police spokesman Lt. Dave Brown said.Brown said the Lynn police department does not partake in solicitations and if a person becomes suspicious to call the real police.”The Lynn police department does not conduct solicitations and it is highly unlikely that this person has any connection with a law enforcement organization,” Brown said. “In the event that other citizens have similar encounters, please be mindful that this could be a scam, and contact police. We would like to identify individuals soliciting money in our city.”