As the community mourns the passing of two Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department employees, the sheriff’s department is warning people to be wary about scams looking to profit off the tragedy.

Deputy Jason Garner and Community Service Officer Raschel Johnson were killed Saturday morning in a solo vehicle collision while in route to a burglary investigation. The collision remains under investigation by the California Highway Patrol.

The sheriff’s department stated they had learned of one phony Go Fund Me account looking to make money from the donations of community members. The account used the photos of Garner and Johnson and has since been taken down. Investigators are looking into who started the account.

The department also is warning of phone callers soliciting donations for the two surviving families.

Delete - Merge UpThe sheriff’s department is not collecting donations via phone calls, nor are any associated groups.

“Exploiting the Garner family and the Johnson family by soliciting fraudulent donations is a despicable criminal act,” said Stanislaus County Sheriff Adam Christiansen. “If identified, those criminal cowards will be arrested and prosecuted.”

The Stanislaus Sworn Deputies Association is in the process of establishing a Memorial Fund for Deputy Garner and CSO Johnson. Once the fund is established, the information will be shared on their Facebook page and the website at www.scsdonline.com.

The Johnson family has established an approved GoFundMe account at www.gofundme.com/memorial-fund-for-cso-johnson.