Over the past few days, several citizens have contacted the Vancouver Police Department regarding a phone message they received from a “Lt. Michael Knotts”. Citizens report that the caller requests a call back to discuss an “urgent legal issue”. This is a scam call. Although a Lt. Michael Knotts does work for the Vancouver Police Department, he did not make these calls. Vancouver Police personnel do not make phone calls to solicit funds, request money to resolve legal matters or request financial or other sensitive information from citizens.
Anyone with questions regarding the legitimacy of calls from people claiming to represent the Vancouver Police Department should contact us directly at (360) 487-7355 or (360) 487-7500 during regular business hours. After hours, citizens may call 3-1-1 and request a call back from on-duty personnel.
The Federal Trade Commission has information on a variety of common phone scams: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0208-phone-scams.