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Utah County man helping sheriff’s deputies stop phone scam

Posted at 10:04 PM, Mar 11, 2019
and last updated 2019-03-12 00:04:40-04

SALT LAKE CITY – On Sunday, Brody Chipman was walking out of a movie when he got a voicemail that appeared to come from Lt. David Oliver with the Utah County Sheriff’s Department.

The voice on the phone said in part, “This message is for Mr. Brody Chipman. Mr. Chipman this is Lt. David Oliver again, Utah County Sheriff’s Office...I need to speak with today Mr. Chipman or there could be some serious legal implications.”

Chipman got on his computer and verified there is a Lt. Oliver with the Utah County Sheriff’s Department, who is the administration services commander for the department.

“I was like, I’m going to send this voicemail to this lieutenant cause his emails posted and see if it’s legit,” Chipman said.

Within a few hours he got a response that the call was bogus.

“My name has been used, Lt. Oliver’s name has been used, we’ve had a couple of other employees and former employees who’s names have been used,” said Sgt. Spencer Cannon. “These scammers will use a real name in an effort to lend credibility to their call.”

Sadly, Canon said the scam works enough that people keep trying it.

“There’s a local agency here that I’m told within the last few days had a victim who was actually victimized to the tune of close to $2,000,” he said.