Overland Park Police asking for help identifying laptop thief

Posted: November 7, 2011 - 12:17pm

Photo provided by the Overland Park Police Department

The Overland Park Police Department is asking for the public's assistance in identifying a man who allegedly stole a woman's laptop computer.

Police say on September 20th, a woman reported the theft of a laptop computer. She told police that she had loaned the laptop to a man she had met on Facebook. The computer was not returned as agreed upon by the two individuals. The woman does not know the male suspect's identity and she has been unsuccessful in recontacting the man.

As always, Police remind the public to exercise caution on social networking sites.

Anyone with information on this case or that knows the identity of the man pictured is asked to call Overland Park Police at 913-344-8750.

Westar Energy warns customers to be on alert

Westar Energy is reminding their customers to be on alert for fraudulent callers claiming to be Westar Energy employees. Several customers have contacted Westar Energy's Customer Relations center after receiving suspicious calls.

In most cases, the caller claims to be a Westar Energy Customer Service Representative and attempts to gain credit card information or other personal information, claiming a check bounced or that there is a past-due bill. When questioned, the caller has provided a call-back number that belongs to an adult entertainment business.

Westar Energy says that legitimate calls should show 316-383-8600 and Westar Energy on caller ID. Customer Service agents should always be able to provide their name and extension if requested. Calls from Westar Energy requesting payment are never made the same day as the disconnection. The customer should always have the opportunity to call Westar Energy back and verify the information.

If you receive a call that is suspicious, Westar Energy says that you should hang up and call the Westar Energy Customer Relations Center at 1-800-383-1183 or report the call to local law enforcement.

Scammers posing as Sheriff's Deputies

Johnson County Sheriff's Office News Release:

Olathe, Kan. – Scammers posing as Johnson County Sheriff’s Deputies have stolen thousands of dollars from area businesses in the last two years.  And this trend continued with at least two more scam attempts in recent weeks involving businesses in Olathe.  

The scam begins with a phone call to a business and in most cases a restaurant.  The caller then requests to speak to the manager on duty.  The caller tells the manager they are with the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office and one of their employees has been arrested and is in jail.  The caller usually has the name, the reason for the arrest and a very good description of the person they claim to need bail money for.  They then request the manager wire money to bond their employees out of jail.  The request is to a specific place which is always outside of the Johnson County area.  

It should be stressed that the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office does not under any circumstances request money from anyone concerning a bond.  The person making requests for bond money should be the person arrested and in need of bail.

Anyone receiving a call from anyone identifying themselves as a deputy with the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office requesting bail money be wired to a location should gather as much information from the caller as they can, hang up, call 911 and report this attempted crime.