A man fraudulently dressed as an Alaska Power and Telephone employee asked to enter the home of a Haines resident last week.
According to accounts from temporary police chief Glen Klinkhart and Skagway AP&T manager Darren Belisle, a man dressed plainly wearing a yellow vest knocked on an AP&T customer’s door and introduced himself as an AP&T employee. He said he needed access to the inside of the customer’s home to inspect power within the house.
The man’s vest and other clothing did not have an AP&T logo, and he also did not have a labeled AP&T vehicle. The customer didn’t recognize the man and did not let him in the house. He reported the incident to the Haines AP&T office, which then reported it to the police. Belisle would not release the customer’s identity at the time of the interview.
“This is a good opportunity to let people know that utility personnel aren’t going to show up and ask to go into your home,” Klinkhart said.
Klinkhart said that although these types of scammers may pocket small valuables in a home, the purpose of the scam is often just to survey houses for valuables and other information.
AP&T director of marketing Mark McCready posted an informational graphic on the company’s Facebook page as well as the Haines Chatters page Aug. 26 to remind customers about the dangers of scamming and fraud. The graphic says that AP&T will only come into a home for a pre-arranged appointment or if the customer has called them to do so. Also, personnel always wear the company logo and drive AP&T vehicles.
Both Belisle and Klinkhart said to call AP&T directly if there are any doubts and they will identify their employees.