‘Do not fall into this trap’: Sheriff’s Office warns of scammers posing as employees
The Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office says scammers are calling people pretending to be employees — again — to try to scare them into paying “large sums of cash.”
Scammers making phone calls that have been reported to the Sheriff’s Office claim the recipient is being investigated for criminal activity and demand they pay money “to avoid further prosecution,” according to a Monday news release.
But it’s all fake.
Neither the Sheriff’s Office nor its employees solicit payments for fines over the phone or in person, according to the release.
“Scammers prey on people with these official sounding phone calls and make good people feel desperate and concerned,” the release says.
The scammers even use Caller ID “spoofing” to make the phone calls look legitimate.
“Please do not fall into this trap. Do not give your personal information, including your social security number, out to someone who calls you. Never pay someone over the phone with a credit card, debit card, gift card or prepaid debit card unless you initiated the purchase,” the news release says.
Anyone who receives such a call and wants to check whether it’s legitimate can call the Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office at 316-660-3880.
If you fall victim to a scam like this, you can report it to your local law enforcement agency. You can also report scams and other types of fraud at www.reportfraud.ftc.gov.
