TAYLORSVILLE – A scam targeting Southern Pine members has been reported.  A member has alerted us that a person posing as someone from Entergy called claiming that he owed money and would have his power disconnected if payment wasn’t received.

The caller stated that Entergy and Southern Pine had merged into one company.  The caller requested personal information and stated that the member could pay his outstanding bill from a wire transfer phone at a CVS pharmacy.  Account numbers were provided to the member to make payments.  The callers spoke with foreign accents and called from numbers with an 844 and an 800 prefix.

This is a scam and Southern Pine members should not respond to their demands.  Southern Pine and Entergy have not merged into one company.   In addition, Southern Pine will never call a member and threaten loss of service if payment is not received.  Southern Pine will also not call a member and ask for personal identification such as a Social Security number or banking information.

Anyone receiving a scam call should contact local authorities and the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office of Consumer Protection at1-800-281-4418.

Southern Pine Electric is a member-owned electric cooperative that distributes power to more than 65,000 members in 11 counties in south Mississippi.