Fulton man hit by gift-card scam

Roy Simpson said Monday he was the victim of a scam during the weekend by a young man who did some yard work for him.

"After I paid him for the yard work, the young man said he needed some money for gas and offered to sell me a $100 Walmart gift card for $60. I paid him $60 for the gift card in order to help him with gas money he said he needed," the Fulton man said.

Simpson later took the gift card to Walmart and was told that the card had never been activated.

"I'm 63 years old and disabled, and now I'm out $60. I tried to call the young man but he won't answer the phone," Simpson said.

Simpson said Fulton police told him it is a civil matter, especially since he had not been able to contact the young man.

Simpson said he also was approached by another man wanting to trim trees in the back yard of his residence.

"Even after I had told him that I rented the residence and did not own it," Simpson said, "he still wanted me to sign the paper. But I wouldn't sign it."

"People need to be aware of a lot of people who want money for drugs are out there trying to scam people out of their money," Simpson said.

On May 1, the Callaway County Sheriff's Office reported the asphalt driveway paving scam was operating again in Callaway County.

Sgt. Bill Akers of the Callaway County Sheriff's Office said the asphalt driveway scamming crew is active in Callaway County almost every year.

Akers said if someone offers to pave a driveway at a reasonable price, ask for a business license and their credentials.

The scammers often say they have been working on a paving job and have some asphalt left over that could be used to pave a driveway.

The work usually is of inferior quality and priced far too high for the work done.