More Fraud, Identity Theft Reported In Nutley

The Nutley Police Department said in March that residents reported a string of fraud and identity-theft incidents during February, adding to a pattern of scam complaints that township officials have been flagging for years. A March 9 Patch report, citing police, listed cases involving a fake account-update email, an altered check, a suspicious cashier’s check tied to a vehicle sale and a caller posing as a bank representative. Nutley officials have also separately warned residents about spoofed police calls and other misleading solicitations, according to township advisories. ### Which scams did Nutley police say residents reported most recently? The Feb. 2, Feb. 3, Feb. 4 and Feb. 8 incidents described by Nutley police covered several common fraud tactics in a span of one week. In one case on High Street, police said a resident received an email from an unknown address saying an account needed to be updated and was told to provide an access code; after the code was shared, the account was depleted. On Howard Place, a resident who mailed a check to a credit card company later learned the amount and payee name had been altered, police said. (patch.com) A Feb. 4 report from Ridge Road involved a resident selling a vehicle who received what appeared to be an altered cashier’s check, with alignment and font irregularities that suggested it was fraudulent, according to police. On Feb. 8, a resident on Stager Street told police a caller claiming to represent the resident’s bank said a courier needed to pick up a compromised debit card; the resident became suspicious, photographed the car and froze the account instead of handing over the card, police said. (patch.com) ### How does the police-impersonation piece fit into these complaints? A Nutley police advisory published Jan. 17, 2023 said several residents reported calls that appeared to come from the department, but officers determined they had not placed them. Chief Thomas Strumolo said the calls appeared to involve “spoofing,” in which phone applications can disguise a caller’s number and display a trusted name or number on a resident’s caller ID. (patch.com) Director Alphonse Petracco said in that advisory that callers can be “very clever” in persuading people to trust them and urged residents to call police directly to confirm whether a contact is legitimate. The advisory said residents had been told to contact an officer at a number that was not Nutley Police. ### Have township officials warned about other fraud tactics before? A Nutley police alerts page shows the department has issued multiple scam-related warnings in recent years. (nutleynj.org) Those notices include a donation-solicitation warning saying callers were misleading residents into thinking they were Nutley police, and a Jan. 19, 2024 advisory stating police had recovered a skimming device from an ATM machine in town. Patch’s Belleville-Nutley coverage also shows fraud complaints surfacing repeatedly in Nutley. A Jan. 23, 2025 report said police had logged another wave of fraud cases involving bitcoin, credit cards, checks and mail, while a Dec. 9, 2024 report said fraud and identity-theft cases continued to be reported in the township. ### What are residents supposed to do when they get a suspicious call or message? (nutleynj.org) Nutley police said residents should contact headquarters directly rather than rely on a phone number supplied by an unsolicited caller. The Jan. 17, 2023 advisory told residents to call police at 973-284-4940 to determine whether an unknown caller is legitimate. The department’s website also lists contact information and a “Submit a Tip” option on its police page. (patch.com) In the February fraud cases summarized by Patch, police said the detective bureau was notified after several of the incidents were reported. ### Where can people in Nutley keep checking for new advisories? The Township of Nutley’s police alerts and advisories page continues to post public warnings and department notices, including scam-related advisories and accreditation updates. (nutleynj.org) The police department page also lists community programs, records and contact information for residents who want to report concerns or verify a suspicious approach. (nutleynj.org) Patch’s Belleville-Nutley news page and local police-blotter coverage have continued to publish new fraud reports as they are released. As of March 9, 2026, the latest Patch summary of Nutley fraud cases was based on incidents reported to police in February. (patch.com) (nutleynj.org)