Scammers Attempt Construction Payment Fraud

SCAM ALERT

This week, a resident was approached two men claiming to be contracted City of Tukwila construction workers working on a road project. They were a part of a scam to defraud the resident.

⛳️ Red Flag #1 They did not have business cards, uniforms, or anything else to lend credibility to their claim. They stated that they were working on an urgent construction project for the city but first needed to fix a drainage issue with the resident’s property.

⛳️ Red Flag #2 Before doing so, they informed the resident that they would need to be paid a large sum of money directly by the resident to complete the repairs since the repairs were on the resident’s property.

⛳️ Red Flag #3 Their vehicle had no construction company markings or signs that it was a work vehicle.

⛳️ Red Flag #4 Sensing that the resident was not buying it, they enacted Plan B which was to call their “supervisor” aka their friend waiting nearby to come and try to add credibility to their scheme.

Plan B also proved to be a failure as the resident instead called the city to verify whether or not any work was being done. City employees stated that no such work was being completed and no contracted company or employees would be demanding payment from a resident in such a manner either.

If you are approached by anyone claiming to be a city employee or claiming to be a contracted city employee that is asking for payment or something feels off, do not hesitate to call 9-1-1. Officers and or city employees can quickly verify whether or not the individual(s) is in fact who they claim to be.

Under no circumstances will a City employee or contractor that is hired come to your door or call and request money and/or upfront costs for services.

✅ Prior to any work, flyers are sent out to area residents, (with major projects there is usually a public outreach during the design process.).

✅ Contractors are also required to let businesses know of potential impacts, which is routinely done with door hangers or flyers on doors.

✅ City construction can be found on our City of Tukwila website under City Construction Projects, which will include the project manager’s name and contact info.