By Tom Hintgen

Otter Tail County Correspondent

County sheriff deputies, late in the evening on Jan. 25, reported that fire destroyed a shop and damaged a nearby house. The location was close to Highway 11, southwest of Elizabeth and northwest of Fergus Falls.

“After the electricity went out in the house, home owners looked outside and saw their shop fully engulfed in flames,” said a county deputy.

The shop was a total loss by the time firefighters arrived. The house sustained smoke damage.

Sheriff deputies added that the state fire marshal was contacted.

Fraudsters posing as

bank representatives

County residents are urged to beware of potential internet scams when some fraudsters are posing as bank representatives. 

Some of those fraudsters, in recent days, have contacted some county residents, through the internet, saying they are representatives of Wells Fargo bank.

The county sheriff’s office, and other law enforcement agencies, urge people to never click on a suspicious link where fraudsters often ask for Social Security numbers and other private information.

“Watch out for unusual messages over the internet with urgent tones,” said a representative of one of Minnesota’s law enforcement agencies. “Genuine Wells Fargo texts won’t have a sense of urgency about them. Their intention will be to give you information, not extract it.”

If you are unsure whether or not a legitimate message is coming from Wells Fargo, call the Wells Fargo security number (1-800-869-3557) or call the county sheriff office at 218-998-8555.