8-11-16
The Landmark
Worcester County Sheriff Lew Evangelidis is warning residents about a recent phone scam in which the caller tells victims that they have an arrest warrant in their name. The caller tells the individual that in order to avoid going to jail that they need to pay a fine. Unlike previous scams which involved claims of missed jury duty, the current scam does not exactly say what the warrant is for but the caller fraudulently uses the Sheriff ’s Office name and/ or number.
The sheriff ’s office has now received numerous reports of this type of phone scam. In some cases, the scammer identifies himself as Officer Paul Gibbs of the Worcester County Sheriff ’s Office and then asks for money to clear up the warrant. This individual is not employed by the Worcester County Sheriff ’s Department. The Worcester County Sheriff ’s Office encourages people to be aware of calls like this and to never give personal or financial information over the phone to anyone whom you didn’t call yourself.
“Our department does not contact residents and demand payment or ask for credit card information. Today’s scam artists are always trying to stay ahead of the curve, residents need to beware of any unsolicited calls that ask for their personal or credit card information,” said the Sheriff. “These callers can sound convincing, will be aggressive and try to intimidate you, even threaten you with jail time. We encourage anyone who gets a suspicious call to just hang up or call authorities first before giving out any type of personal information or money.”
