Crime & Safety
DTE Energy Phone Scam Bilks Dearborn Business Out of $2,000
The following information was supplied by the Dearborn Police Department. Where arrests or charges are mentioned, it does not indicate a conviction.
A Dearborn business fell victim to a statewide telephone scam involving callers posing as representatives for the energy company.
Badie Munassar, owner of Al-Saha restaurant on Warren Avenue, told Dearborn police officers that he was contacted on Aug. 8 by a man who stated he was from DTE's Disconnect Team. The suspect informed Munassar that he had the restaurant's account number.
After reading the account number, the man told Munassar that the account was deliquent and the electricity would be shut off if he didn’t pay via Green Dot cards.
Munassar bought cards for $995.28 on Aug. 8, $504.95 on Aug. 9 and $490.31 on Aug. 12. He contacted DTE on Monday after the final transaction was complete and was told there’s no “disconnect team” and that he was the victim of a scam.
The receipts for the Green Dot cards and the Green Dot card purchased on Aug. 12 were logged by police for evidence.
Representatives for DTE Energy said the scam has been an ongoing issue.
"There are con artists out there who are always looking for new ways to victimize innocent people," said Michael Lynch, DTE Energy's director of corporate security. "We want customers to know that if they receive a phone call claiming to be from Detroit Edison or MichCon, and they want to verify the authenticity of the call, they should contact DTE Energy at 800-477-4747."
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