INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Zoo is warning guests of a scam that is making the rounds on social media offering a ticket giveaway.
The zoo posted the alert Monday evening showing a Facebook post that claims to be offering 200 people a chance to buy four tickets to the zoo for $6.95. The post includes a photo that features the Indianapolis Zoo's Facebook profile photo and the claim that the zoo is turning 80 years old.
"If you see an ad like this, please do not click on this! They are #scams trying to collect your information by falsely using the Indianapolis Zoo's name. Please report the ad and the page who posted it to help us get the ad taken down," the zoo wrote in the post Monday.
According the the Indianapolis Zoo, while the discussion about establishing a zoo in the Circle City was floated about 80 years ago, construction on the zoo didn't start until 1962. The zoo opened at its original location on East 30th Street in April 1964 and opened in its current location at White River State Park after the original zoo closed in November 1987.
Indianapolis isn't the only zoo to be targeted by the Facebook scam.
13News sister stations in North Carolina, Ohio, and Virginia have also reported on similar posts that claim to offer ticket deals to their local zoos. Each post claims to be giving away ticket bundles for the same $6.95 price to celebrate a zoo's birthday or anniversary, each of which is untrue.