(KNZA)--Brown County Sheriff John Merchant is alerting residents about another scam circulating in the area..

Merchant said a letter is being mailed to county residents informing them a relative had died and left them millions of dollars in the form of a life insurance policy.

The letter instructs them to contact a person by e-mail who has all of the necessary paperwork to process the policy and provide immediate payment. It also requests a "high level" of confidentiality.

Merchant is urging residents to throw the letters in the trash and not to respond to them.

He said one person said that the name of the deceased person was in fact a distant relative and they thought it was credible.  Some family members then became involved and spoke with an attorney, who informed them it was a scam.