RRPD reports telephone impersonators of police and cartel in community

RIO RANCHO — Scammers are still making their calls in the Rio Rancho community, posing as police officers, the department stated.

As of Sept. 11, Rio Rancho Police Department warned of callers claiming to be cartel members.

“The imposters claim to have kidnapped children and request payment immediately if the family wants to see their children again,” a RRPD Facebook post states.

People have reported hearing screams in the background believing it to be their children, it adds.

RRPD confirmed all children were found safe and that the calls were scams.

“We do recognize that fraudulent activity spans many platforms to include telephone correspondence,” RRPD Public Information Officer Nick Army said Sept. 9.

He added that the city of Rio Rancho is no exception to this activity, stating RRPD has fielded two calls for service in relation to telephone scams recently.

“During both incidents, the imposter did not allege to be an officer with the Rio Rancho Police Department, rather, neighboring jurisdictions,” Army said.

In a PSA on social media, RRPD warned the community that scammers may claim to be law enforcement, threaten arrest or demand payment over the phone.

However, RRPD will never call people asking for money.

“We will never demand payment through gift cards, wire transfers or mobile payment apps. If you receive a suspicious call, hang up immediately and verify directly with RRPD by calling our non-emergency line,” the post states.

The non-emergency line is 505-891-7226.