Scammers tell Sedgwick County sex offenders to pay fine or face jail time

Phone scammers pretending to be with the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office have been targeting the county’s sex offenders, according to the sheriff’s office.

“The targets of the scam, mostly registered offenders, were called and told they needed to resubmit a DNA sample or face 90 days in jail,” the sheriff’s office said in a news release. “The scammers then offer to waive the jail time and testing if the individual pays a fine.”

In an email, Lt. Benjamin Blick said the scammers would ask for $5,000. He said no one that they know of has paid and they’ve received no more than 10 complaints this week about the scams. It’s unclear where the scammers got the sex offender’s phone number but “we are aware their names and addresses” are on the Kansas Bureau of Investigation website, he said.

Offenders can be searched by name or within proximity of an address on the KBI site.

Scammers often target elderly people. A 2021 FBI report found that elderly people are more often the victims of scams. But, scams targeting sex offenders are not unheard of. Blick said, in Sedgwick County, “it happened one other time over a year ago with a few sex offenders losing some money to the scam.”

The sheriff’s office said not to give out personal information to someone who calls you. Additionally, the sheriff’s office said it will not ever collect fines over the phone. If uncertain about the legitimacy of a call, Sedgwick County residents can call the sheriff’s office at 316-660-3900.