Scammers Continue to Pose as Law Enforcement
/Phone scammers pretending to be Clay County Sheriff’s Office employees continue to call residents in an attempt to scam them out of their money. Unfortunately, people still fall for the scam.
The Sheriff’s Office says that the most common phone scam they hear about is the one about jury duty. It comes and goes but it is the most frequent version.
“Scammers call residents claiming to be a deputy from our office (sometimes they use the name of real employees they got off our web site) and say you missed jury duty, so now there's a warrant for your arrest,” reads a Sheriff’s Office Facebook post.
Scammers will do whatever they can to keep a potential victim on the phone. They will try to confuse the victim with case numbers, court dates, fines, and payment arrangements.
“They say you can avoid arrest by paying a bond. At first, they'll ask to meet in person, but they are usually not local, so they'll change that to sending them an electronic payment,” states the Sheriff’s Office.
The Sheriff’s Office wants you to know these facts about warrants and jury duty:
* In Missouri, the penalty for missing jury duty is NOT arrest; it's a fine.
* We NEVER call to tell someone there's a warrant for their arrest. We'll make them aware of that in person, when we arrest them.
* We do not accept electronic payments. The only way to pay a bond is in cash in the Detention Center lobby.
* Though they usually are not local, scammers often spoof local phone numbers - including ours - to make themselves appear legitimate.
Another variation on this is saying you were an "expert witness" who missed court, and now there is a warrant for your arrest.
The Sheriff’s Office recommends hanging up on the scammer if you get one of these calls.
Brian Watts contributed to this story.
