Kathy Ronquillo has received numerous yellow postcards in the mail this month promising a $500 gift card to shop at Walmart, Target and more. It’s a scam, she warned.
“I don’t want other people to fall for this,” she said.
Living on a fixed income, Ronquillo said she could use extra money to buy groceries, so she called the number listed, (888) 258-0567. But to claim her “Free Reward,” the woman on the other end of the line demanded her Social Security number and financial account information, she said.
“They wanted me to pay a $5 fee in return for the $500 gift card,” said Ronquillo.
The Cortez Journal also called the number. After a brief wait, an agent immediately demanded the 10-digit claim number listed on the postcard, so we could choose from among four rewards. We first asked who was sponsoring the giveaway.
“The cash reward hotline is sponsored by Duplicell,” the agent responded.
Duplicell is a skin rejuvenating cream company based in New York. In addition to the cash reward, the telemarketer promised a 30-day supply of skin cream valued at $119 would be shipped and received within 3 to 5 business days, along with the gift reward.
“All we ask is that you send us $4.95 for postage,” said the agent.
The telemarketer added the $500 gift card could be used at thousands of grocery stores.
After being told by the company that she could use her $500 grocery voucher at Walmart, Ronquillo - suspicious of the claim - said she called Walmart in Cortez for verification.
“The Walmart manager told me it was a world wide scam,” said Ronquillo. “Don’t send these people anything.”
An online search of the listed number on the postcard revealed others had also received the notice. They too warned the postcard was a hoax.
tbaker@cortezjournal.com
