Police Department

Recently, the FBI warned U.S. citizens of the prevalence of this long-present fraud, which saw an uptick during the Coronavirus related layoffs. UTMB Police has learned that this scam has impacted the University as well. 

Stolen identities are used to apply for unemployment insurance claims. Suspects obtain the information from a variety of sources. The FBI stated that such data sources can include the online purchase of stolen information, previous data breaches, computer intrusions, cold-calling victims while using impersonation scams, email phishing schemes, physical theft of data from individuals or third parties, and from public websites and social media accounts. 

Many victims of identity theft related to unemployment insurance claims do not know they have been targeted until they try to file a claim for unemployment insurance benefits, receive a notification from the state unemployment insurance agency, receive an IRS Form 1099-G showing the benefits collected from unemployment insurance, or get notified by their employer that a claim has been filed while the victim is still employed.

Click here for more information: UTMB Police: Scam Alert

The Galveston Police Department reported that on Saturday 10/10/2020 at approximately 2:55 A.M., gunshots were reported near Winnie and 4th Street. UTMB Police Officers responded and located a deceased male that was apparently shot. The possible suspect(s) were not located or arrested and are believed to have fled the scene prior to police arriving to investigate. Currently, there are no witnesses to this event to provide a description of the possible assailant(s). At this time, there is no indication that the individual is affiliated with UTMB.