Sheriff’s office warns public about increase in phone scams
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IDAHO FALLS – The Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office is warning the public about an increase in phone scams.
It has recently received many reports regarding a phone scam targeting eastern Idaho residents, where callers are asking for money from victims to avoid arrest.
“In the scam, the victims are told they may have a warrant for their arrest related to jury duty, fines or other court issues,” according to a news release from the sheriff’s office. “Ultimately, the victims are told to obtain Green Dot Money cards or other financial cards from a local business and provide the card numbers over the phone in order to pay a fine and avoid arrest or further consequences.”
Often, information and phone numbers used in the scams will reference actual Bonneville County phone numbers, addresses and the names of actual deputies or employees. Sometimes, victims connect to the fraudulent callers when the redial button is pushed.
Deputies have seen several instances where an automated system answers and seems to be a realistic connection to Bonneville County offices.
“While it is common for law enforcement or the county courts to contact people by phone for what could be a variety of issues, there is never a circumstance where a law enforcement or county official will solicit money over the phone for the purposes of avoiding arrest or criminal consequences,” states the news release. “Individuals who do have active warrants for their arrest for any purpose must contact the courts directly, turn themselves in to local law enforcement or be contacted in person by law enforcement to resolve.”
It is important to note that failing to respond to things like jury duty or failing to pay court fines can result in the court issuing a warrant for your arrest, but to resolve that issue you need to have direct contact with the courts, and usually you will have a personal appearance before a judge.
The sheriff’s office emphasized that the largest indicator of a phone scam is any request for the victims to physically travel to a local store, buy a money or financial gift card, and provide the card numbers over the phone.
“Some scams suggest alternative options such as paying at a ‘kiosk’ in the lobby of the courthouse or sheriff’s office or providing bank account numbers or personal information to transfer funds,” states the news release. “Again, this is never a method law enforcement or court officials will use to collect fines or help people avoid arrest for any reason.”
It’s been common recently to see multiple versions of these phone scams targeting jury duty notices, compromised Social Security numbers, overdue taxes or fines, sex offender registry violations, or situations claiming your loved ones need bailed out of jail or have been kidnapped.
“Victims of these crimes come from all walks of life and all ages. It is always good practice to frequently monitor your financial accounts for suspicious activity and change your account passwords often, especially if you’ve been the victim of a phone or internet scam,” states the news release. “Take the time to research how you can protect your personal information from being compromised and steps to activate available security verifications on all of your financial, email, social media and internet accounts.”
If you have been the victim of a phone scam and have suffered a loss of money, property or your personal information has been compromised, contact Bonneville County dispatch or your local law enforcement to make a report.
If you are unsure if the person calling you is part of a scam, you can always hang up and contact your local dispatch or city/county offices to verify that an officer is trying to reach you.
If you have information about people involved in criminal activity you can always report anonymously to East Idaho Crime Stoppers online at www.IFcrime.org or through the P3tips app on your mobile device.