The City of Gilroy issued a fraud alert to water customers who deposited their payment checks in a utility bill dropbox outside City Hall before someone broke into it this week.
The city’s utility bill dropbox, located between the parking lots in front of Gilroy City Hall, 7351 Rosanna Street, was burglarized some time between the evening of Nov. 14 and the morning of Nov. 15, according to a press release from the City of Gilroy. An unspecified number of payment checks were stolen from the dropbox.
Earlier this week, city staff discovered what appeared to be a malfunctioning lock on the deposit box. It didn’t appear at that time that any contents had been accessed. The lock was repaired that afternoon.
However, some time overnight Thursday the dropbox was forcefully pried open and checks were stolen.
“Out of an abundance of caution,” the city is now recommending that anyone who used the dropbox to pay their City of Gilroy water bill between Nov. 11 and Nov. 15 to take the following precautions:
- Cancel the check used to pay the bill (the city will reimburse cancelled check fees);
- Watch for fraudulent activity on banking accounts;
- Alert the city’s finance department at (408) 846-0420. City finance staff will update your account and help arrange alternative payment;
- Any fraudulent activity should be reported immediately to your bank.
The Gilroy Police Department is investigating the burglary. City Hall has since suspended dropbox payments.
