The tragic death of Brackenridge Police Chief Justin McIntire and cardiac arrest of Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin have resulted in the creation of scam fundraisers, according to the Better Business Bureau.

A Friday news release from the bureau said in the days following this week’s incidents, legitimate fundraisers were established for McIntire’s family and Hamlin’s toy drive, jointly raising more than $8 million.

However, where there is a lot of money, the Better Business Bureau of upstate New York and Western Pennsylvania said there are scammers looking to cash in.

“In the wake of both circumstances, well-intentioned donors understandably want to help and provide proactive support in any way possible,” said Caitlin Driscoll, BBB of Western Pennsylvania’s public relations director. “BBB is warning potential donors to remain vigilant and always ensure your money is benefiting the intended cause and going to the right place prior to donating.”

On Wednesday, a GoFundMe page for Brackenridge police chief Justin McIntire, who was killed Monday, was identified as fake by the Allegheny County Sheriff’s Office.

Posts made by the sheriff’s office on Facebook and Twitter warned the public to be aware that the page, created by a Michael McIntire, has no connection to McIntire or his family.

“Our office has been informed, and the public should be aware, that this page has no connection to Chief Justin McIntire or his family,” the office said on Facebook.

The account appeared to have raised at least $540 before it was removed from the fundraising website.

According to the BBB, fraudulent fundraising campaigns claiming to benefit McIntire’s family and Hamlin have been identified and removed.

On Thursday, the Tarentum Borough Police Department’s Facebook page promoted an online fundraiser for the McIntire family, which is being hosted on fundthefirst.com.

The page was created Wednesday, and by presstime Friday had raised $71,040 out of a $100,000 goal.

“He was an incredible husband, father and friend to many,” the Tarentum Borough Police Department said on Facebook. “Justin gave his life protecting the community. Now it’s our turn to give back to his family.”

The Tarentum Borough Police Department is also selling T-shirts that will benefit the McIntire family, which includes his wife, Ashley, and children Jordan, Alexis, Brennin and Justin Jr.

McIntire had been chief of the department in the Allegheny County borough since 2019 and was shot while pursuing suspect Aaron Lamont Swan Jr., 28, of Duquesne. Swan was wanted on a probation violation involving weapons. Swan was shot and killed during the incident.

Fans of Hamlin had raised $8,099,350 at presstime Friday for the Chasing M's Foundation Community Toy Drive, a page on gofundme.com. The fundraiser started with a modest goal of $2,500.

The fund is to support children hardest hit by the pandemic in Hamlin’s hometown of McKees Rocks.

A recent update to the page reads, “This fundraiser was initially established to support a toy drive for Damar’s community, sponsored by the Chasing M’s Foundation. However, it has received renewed support in light of Damar’s current battle, and we can’t thank all of you enough. Your generosity and compassion mean the world to us.

“As representatives of Damar, the team at Jaster Athletes posted the fundraiser updates and will work with the Hamlin family, The Chasing M's Foundation, and the GoFundMe team to ensure the safe delivery of funds.”

Mike Slupe, county sheriff, said he prefers donors sending a check to a bank that is handling a fundraiser for a victim or charity.

“(With) online fundraising companies like GoFundMe, not 100% goes to the charity,” he said.

He said scam calls are worse in the county than ever, with multiple schemers calling residents from a spoofed number and talking them into handing over money, bank and credit card numbers or gift cards. Spoofed numbers are when a caller deliberately falsifies the information transmitted to your caller ID display to disguise their identity.

One brazen scammer called Slupe’s captain at the sheriff’s office and, in a foreign accent, said he was Chief Deputy Harry Callithen.

“She gave him a hard time, and he swore at her and hung up,” Slupe said.

He said other scammers try to tell innocent residents they have warrants out for their arrest, missed jury duty, have a relative in jail that needs to be bailed out and a host of other scams.

“It’s nonstop,” Slupe said. “You can’t keep up with them anymore.”

He advises residents to hang up if they doubt the veracity of a phone call.

“If we have a warrant for you and you hang up, we’re still going to have a warrant for you,” Slupe said.

He said during his long tenure as sheriff, his deputies have never gone to pick up someone because they have a warrant for missing jury duty.

Slupe feels bad for good-hearted folks who fall victim to an online or telephone scam.

“Everyone wants to be friendly,” he said. “That’s how we’re built. We have a heart when it comes to misfortune.”

But Slupe said residents must take a hard line if they are the least bit suspicious of a caller.

“Just hang up,” he said.

BBB in its Friday release reminded people not to assume that pictures represent an official connection to the person or family identified, saying not all crowdfunding sites operate alike. Some vet posts more rigorously than others.

The bureau recommends potential donors visit the BBB Wise Giving Alliance website at give.org for information, including a scam tracker.

Anyone who has been the victim of a scam or who has become aware of a scam, can help prevent others from being scammed by sharing their stories in the tracker, which is available at BBB.org/scamtracker.