Szumski
Residents were deceived into paying $1,000s in shakedown, sheriff says
Click here to subscribe today or Login.
WILKES-BARRE — Area residents have been deceived into paying thousands of dollars in a scam involving missing jury duty, according to a news release from the Luzerne County Sheriff’s Department.
Sheriff Brian M. Szumski in the news release stated several residents in Luzerne County received telephone calls from individuals claiming to be with either the court system or sheriff’s department. They are then advised an arrest warrant has been issued for their arrest for missing jury duty, the news release says.
Those who received calls were then informed because the judge deems them to be a good citizen, the warrant could be dropped if they pay a fine.
The scammers then direct their targets to go to a drug store or convenient store and purchase prepaid debit cards or I-Tune cards to pay the fines. Scammers have also directed to read card numbers over the telephone bilking thousands of dollars from area residents, the news release says.
Scammers have used the internet to mask the phone numbers they use, conceal information on computers to cash the cards, set up an official sounding answering service with voice prompts to field “missed” calls and spoofed a phone line using a courthouse telephone number.
Szumski reminds residents the sheriff’s department does not make phone calls to those who are wanted on warrants or judge imposed capias warrants.
“If you are wanted, or the Sheriff’s Department has documents to deliver to you, they will make a personal visit to your home. Additionally, the Sheriff’s Department never asks for payments over the phone, all payments that have been made to the Sheriff’s Department have to be made directly to the requested department, inside of the building, or through the mail with certified checks, or money orders, directly to the requesting department’s official address,” the news release says.
Anyone who has been a victim of the scam are advised to report the incident to their local police department and the Federal Trade Commission at https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/#crnt&panel1-1.