HENDERSON, Nev. (FOX5) – People could face some serious consequences if jury duty is missed, like fines or even jail time.
The Federal Trade Commission has issued a warning about this kind of government imposter scam. The agency got nearly 160,000 reports of them in 2023.
Scammers hope to fork up some money to stay out of handcuffs.
It starts with a call from someone claiming to be a police officer with a badge number, even a case number. They’ll tell their victims jury duty was skipped, and now there’s a warrant out for your arrest.
They’ll waive that though, for a fee. If it’s not paid, they’ll threaten to make an arrest.
“It’s a scam that’s being presented to you,” said Sergeant Ryan Jappe of the Henderson Police Department’s Financial Crimes Unit.
Jappe said the scammers are even impersonating Henderson police officers.
If someone receives this call, no matter how real and terrifying it all sounds, neither the police nor any other government agency will call and demand money sent right away.
They won’t ask for social security numbers over the phone either.
“The fear of being contacted by a government agency is sometimes enough where the victim feels that pressure that they have to comply with what’s being told to them,” Jappe shared.
If the call drives worry, Jappe recommended to take a breath, hang up and find the number for the agency the scammer claims to work for and call that number directly.
A real government official would not have a problem to verify.
“If it’s a scam, they’re not going to let you hang up,” Sgt. Jappe continued. “They know if they keep you on the phone, they can keep feeding you information.”
Just like it is illegal to skip jury duty, it’s also illegal to impersonate police and court officials.
You can report this scam at any local police department, the Federal Trade Commission or the FBI.
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