Mower County Sheriff’s Office receives scam report involving company advertising for people to work from home

The Mower County Sheriff’s Office is investigating after receiving a report from a resident of Dexter concerning a scam involving a company advertising for people to work from home.

A deputy with the Sheriff’s Office responded Tuesday to a residence in Dexter to speak with the victim, who told authorities that he had been searching online for a job when he found a work from home ad on Facebook Marketplace.  The victim contacted the company “Baker McKenzie” and was provided a job application to complete.  He went on to state to the deputy that the application required him to provide his Minnesota driver’s license and Social Security number.  The victim completed the application and submitted it, and he was then contacted and told he would have to complete an online interview, which he did.  The victim was then given a job offer and told he would need to set up a home office.  He was advised that “Baker McKenzie” would pay for his office supplies and Chief Deputy Sheriff Mark May stated that the company told the victim that they would send him a check to cover the costs.  

May stated that the victim was told to use a certain website to purchase the supplies and received a check for $3,550, but he added that the business listed on the check was “Roller and Associated, Inc.,” which did not match the company he received the job offer from.  The victim brought the check to his bank to verify its authenticity prior to depositing it, but May stated that he was told the check was fraudulent.  

May went on to state that the victim was then advised to contact the major credit bureaus, and to monitor his credit report.