GEORGETOWN, Del. - The Georgetown Police Department is alerting local businesses about fraudulent emails impersonating town employees.
Police said the messages appear on reproduced official Georgetown letterhead and request payment through wire transfer for supposed town services.
For Georgetown Town Manager Gene Dvornick, the situation is unfortunate.
"The town will not send out an email requesting that an applicant, ratepayer or anyone who owes a payment to the town submit it through wire transfer with specific wire instructions," Dvornick said. "It's usually the reverse. People come in and pay in person, or they can pay online. It's very unusual, actually very rare, that we would ever send instructions like that."
Lt. Joel Díaz, deputy chief at the Georgetown Police Department, confirmed to CoastTV News that one business has received the email.
"We will reach out to our agency partners, whether it's Delaware State Police or agencies in other states, to determine if this is a recurring or common occurrence in their jurisdictions and see if we can connect the dots," Díaz said.
Dvornick emphasized how the town handles billing.
"Most of ours will come on town letterhead as a town invoice. It will come in the mail, not through email," Dvornick said. "If you ever have any doubt, please feel free to contact the town of Georgetown. We'll be more than happy to confirm your billing."
The Georgetown Police Department is hoping this is an isolated case. While police continue to investigate, they urge anyone who receives an email matching that description to contact the department at 302-856-6613 and ask for Lt. Barlow.
