Police departments in at least four states have raised concerns about the Indiana-based National Police Association, alleging the group conducts fundraising scams targeting vulnerable people under the guise of raising money for law enforcement.
The Trenton Police Department in Michigan is one of the departments that have issued scam alerts about letters sent by the National Police Association. Other police departments in Wisconsin, Florida, and Indiana have also raised concerns about the group’s authenticity.
The group’s fundraising letters say they are raising funds for local law enforcement, but the Trenton Police Chief Todd Scheffler says his department never received any of the money. Scheffler told the Indianapolis Star that “People think they are doing something beneficial to the community, by donating, and the community doesn’t see the benefits from this. They are just giving money to somebody. We don’t know who this is. It comes back to a P.O. Box.”
Officials of the National Police Association, and his attorney, insists that association isn’t a scam. They say they use a third-party company to conduct fund-raising.
Other law enforcement associated groups, like the Fraternal Order of Police, seem to be unfamiliar with the National Police Association.
Critics say the associations letters target vulnerable people and use fear-mongering language and misrepresent facts. Germantown, Wisconsin Police Chief Peter Hoell said “its no different than any other scam – just a different angle.