If you receive a call from law enforcement telling you an officer is on their way to arrest you for some unpaid ticket, it’s probably a scam.
According to a news release from the office of Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday, imposters using spoofed phone numbers of government agencies are demanding money from potential victims to avoid arrest by the “sheriff’s office.”
“Scammers will do anything to take advantage of hardworking Pennsylvanians, including scaring their targets into making payments,” Sunday said in the release. “Be aware that a sheriff or sheriff deputy will not call you offering a ‘second chance’ from being arrested.”
He also thanked Bucks County Sheriff Fred Harran, who he said first reached out to him about the problem, and other sheriffs who are helping to alert fellow Pennsylvanians about this scheme.
“As someone who has spent nearly 40 years in law enforcement, I find this scam particularly infuriating because these criminals are exploiting the trust that good people have in my office,” Harran said. “These criminals use fear to short-circuit your good judgment.
“Don’t let them. The single most powerful tool you have is the ‘end call’ button.”
Harran’s office posted a similar warning on his department’s page on CrimeWatch in March.
The calls involve telling a potential victim that they have a warrant that can be paid off using Bitcoin or gift cards, or by making payments to random kiosks at grocery stores and other retailers, the alert said.
Sunday added in his release this week that the imposters have been insisting to keep the victim on the phone or demand the victim to call them back.
The scammers may be using the names of actual deputies, spoofing the department’s phone number or using department email addresses.
The alert includes several tips on what to do if you suspect you’ve been called by a scammer:
- Ask for the caller’s name, badge number and the specific department they work in.
- Hang up immediately.
- Call the Bucks County Sheriff’s Office in Doylestown at 215-348-6124 or one of its county offices listed at buckscounty.gov.
- Don’t use any number provided by the caller, as that number could redirect to a fake voicemail or back to the scammers.
The sheriff’s office will never ask for money or issue warrants over the phone or email, the department stated.
People who think they may have been the victim of one of these scams are advised to call their local police departments to file a report immediately.
