Woman warns others about scammers posing as LG&E to drain bank account

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Louisville woman is warning others in the community after she was scammed by someone posing as an LG&E employee.

When Artina Paris-Jones' phone rang on Monday, she said the caller ID showed it was LG&E. She said she knew her bill was overdue and that service was scheduled to be shut off in two days. But the caller managed to convince her the date was wrong, telling her she was going to be disconnected within 30 minutes.

"He actually walked me through adding an app on my phone, where he stole all my money," Paris-Jones said. "He knew the account number, the name, the date, how much I owed."

She lost everything she had in her account — nearly $500.

LG&E officials said the utility will never call a customer to demand payment over the phone. Officials said criminals are now able to get more specific information about the victims they're targeting. Scammers are also using sophisticated tools like caller ID spoofing.

If you get a call from LG&E, or any company demanding payment, hang up and call back yourself.