Girl Scouts Warn of Cookie Sale Impostors

Officials with the Girl Scouts of Western Oklahoma are warning of impostors during the annual Girl Scouts cookie sale.

Deborah Gooding, director of marketing and communications for Girl Scouts of Western Oklahoma, said her organization received a complaint about four people going door to door taking Girl Scout cookie orders and collecting money in advance.

Gooding said the report came from a man in Nichols Hills who said an older couple and two girls asked him to pay $12 up front and said his cookies would be delivered later.

Girl Scouts of Western Oklahoma has had cookies available for purchase since the sale started in January. Girls are not taking orders for cookies as they already have the cookies ready to sell, Gooding said.

Nichols Hills police received no report of such a scam, and Gooding said she was not aware of any more instances. But she said she has gotten similar reports over the years including scam sales with no cookies, or possibly someone who bought cookies and was trying to resell them at a higher price.

Gooding offered the following suggestions to help people identify legitimate Girl Scout cookie sales:

Cookies cost $3.50 per box in western Oklahoma district, which includes Oklahoma City, and $4 per box in eastern Oklahoma.

If someone is taking orders, state that you will pay for the cookies if they come back with the cookies to deliver. Do not pay in advance.

The local council office and adults do not sell Girl Scout cookies door to door. Only Girl Scouts sell cookies.

Girl Scouts are hosting cookie booth sales all over the western half of the state. To make sure you get your Girl Scout Cookies from real Girl Scouts, you can find a cookie booth near you. Go to www.gswestok.org and click on the "I Want Cookies" button under the dancing Thin Mint. You can then click on the "cookie booth locator" link and do a search by ZIP code.