St. Paul police are warning about a scam in which someone poses as an Xcel Energy worker, telling people they need to make an immediate payment over the phone.

The people behind the calls have seemed to "prey upon" people whose first language isn't English, said Howie Padilla, St. Paul police spokesman, on Tuesday.

Police couldn't say how many cases there have been in St. Paul, but Padilla said it's been "more than a handful and hasn't subsided."

In November, someone called a man in St. Paul, pretended to be from Xcel Energy, told him his electrical meter was bad and he needed to pay $300 to fix it, Padilla said. He was instructed to get a prepaid cash card. The man did and called the person back, providing the card's numbers over the phone, Padilla said. The money was taken off the card.

On Thursday, someone called another St. Paul man and claimed he owed Xcel Energy $300 and needed to make a payment immediately, Padilla said. The man went to a store, got a prepaid cash card and was getting ready to call the person back when he became suspicious.

The man called Xcel directly and was told it was a scam, Padilla said. Police suggest people do just that if they get a call from someone trying to collect money or get information -- verify the legitimacy of the call by phoning the company directly. Xcel's customer service number is 800-895-4999.

Police also ask people to report such scams to them. If you suspect a call is a scam, take notes during it so you can pass the information along to police, Padilla said. "Any little piece might be what we need to put this to a stop," he said.

Xcel Energy issued a warning to Minnesota customers about billing scams during the summer, saying in July that more than 120 scams had been reported in the utility's Upper Midwest territory since January. Xcel said then that some impersonators were directing customers to purchase a prepaid cash card and then persuading them to provide the card number over the phone.
