Thurston County Sheriff’s Office warns public about scam
The Thurston County Sheriff’s Office is warning residents about a phone scam in which the caller impersonates an actual deputy.
The scam works like this: The caller says an arrest warrant has been issued for the person who answers the phone because they missed jury duty. The caller then suggests they can avoid being arrested by paying a pre-bail amount of money.
“Citizens need to know there is NO scenario ever in which a law enforcement officer will ever collect bail money outside the setting of a correctional facility,” the sheriff’s office said in a post on its Facebook page.
The sheriff’s office asks that family and friends be alerted to this scam, especially the elderly, because they are most often targeted by scammers.
This isn’t the only phone scam going around.
Centralia police warned residents about a similar scam last week. In that scam, the caller pretends to work for the Social Security Administration. The person then demands payment or else a warrant will be issued for their arrest.
Falling for such a scam can be quite costly.
In October, Elma police warned area residents about a “grandparent” scam after a couple in their 80s sent $27,000 to an address in Pennsylvania, thinking they were helping their grandson.
The couple had received phone calls telling them their grandson was in police custody.
After they withdrew the money and sent it overnight, they called their grandson directly. He told them he was fine and had never been in jail.
This story was originally published January 27, 2019 at 11:32 AM.
