HILLSBORO – The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office has received numerous reports of a scam targeting the residents of our county. It’s likely the same thing is happening around the region.
This is essentially an old scam with a new twist at the end.
The setup: Scammers are calling Jefferson County (and likely others) residents, posing as a member of the Sheriff’s Office (or other agency), and warning victims they have active warrants for their arrest. They tell the victim they must pay the fees immediately or be arrested.
The new twist: The scammer tells the victim to go to the nearest Walmart Money Center. The scammer texts or emails the victim a barcode to show at the Money Center. When scanned, the money goes directly into the scammer’s account.
REMEMBER: Police agencies will NEVER call you to say you have warrants and you’ll never be asked to pay for an outstanding warrant through payment centers, with gift cards, or by wire transfer. Additionally, a citizen who receives this kind of call should always call back to the agency the caller supposedly works for to verify.