Lake County sheriff's office warns of phone scam

The Lake County sheriff's office announced Thursday it's investigating several instances of someone impersonating a police officer over the phone.

A news release said the caller claims to be "Sgt. Michael Cope" and is able to "spoof" the caller identification number so it appears he is calling from the sheriff's office. While on the phone, the caller orders the victims to buy gift cards and provide the PIN numbers, and he has also asked for Social Security numbers and banking information, the release said.

This is similar to a previous scam in which the offender claimed to be "Sgt. Bennett" and said the sheriff's office had an active warrant for the victim's arrest, according to the news release.