Norridge residents have received phone calls asking for donations to support the police department, according to Norridge police.
Police said those phone calls are not coming from the department, and that the department will never solicit funds over the phone, nor will it ever give phone numbers to a third party, via a news release on Thursday.
Police pointed to information from the Federal Trade Commission for persons who are considering making any donation.
Simply having the words “police” or “firefighter” in an organization’s name does not mean police or firefighters are members of the group, they said. Ask for identification, since the caller may be a paid solicitor or even a criminal pretending to represent firefighters or police.
“Just because an organization claims it has local ties does not mean contributions will be used locally. Instead, ask to have information about the organization mailed to you and ask how much of your donation will go directly to the charity,” they wrote.
“Donations to some groups may not be tax deductible. Ask if your contribution is tax-deductible.”
