If it didn’t keep working, it wouldn’t still be worked, and so it seems that scammers are still finding success convincing people that they’re in trouble with the law and need to pay their way out. The latest operation is happening in Manitowoc County where the Sheriff’s Office relates receiving numerous calls from intended scammer targets.
In this latest iteration, the scammers claim a missed jury appearance, failure to appear in federal court, or the subject of an outstanding warrant from a US District Court as the reason the recipient must remain on the phone until they make it to “the contracted law enforcement facility.” According to the Sheriff’s Office, the scammers further threaten that if the call is dropped, the judge’s order of civil process will be terminated and the case will be turned over to the Criminal Investigation Division pending arrest and detainment.
Unique to this latest scam is the issuance of four specific instructions:
- Remain on the phone call with your mobile escort
- Make a verbal sobriety statement before your departure
- Obey all local, state, and federal traffic laws
- If disconnected DO NOT try returning the call – an immediate system call-back will be attempted 3 times, and if no response, the case will be forwarded to the Criminal Investigation Division.
Then, while the victim is en route to the intended destination, the scammer tries to get still more personal information in order to access accounts.
As usual, there are no legitimate courts that will make such calls demanding payments over the phone, even if the call appears legitimate as technology can make the number falsely appear genuine. If you believe you’ve been victimized, report it to your local law enforcement agency, as well as to the Federal Trade Commission at reportfraud.ftc.gov
Comments