The Summit County Sheriff’s Office wants to remind the public to be vigilant in recognizing fraud schemes. Every year, thousands of people lose money to telephone scams. The amount lost can vary from a few dollars to a considerable sum of money.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: May 5, 2017
Contact: Erin Opsahl
(970) 423-8901
Erin.Opsahl@SummitCountyCO.Gov
SUMMIT COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE REMINDS PUBLIC
TO BE AWARE OF PHONE SCAMS
SUMMIT COUNTY, CO – The Summit County Sheriff’s Office wants to remind the public to be vigilant in recognizing fraud schemes. Every year, thousands of people lose money to telephone scams. The amount lost can vary from a few dollars to a considerable sum of money.
Recently, the Summit County Sheriff’s Office has received numerous reports of a telephonic fraud scheme from Summit County residents. During the scam, people have reported that they have received a phone call from a “Sergeant Hall” stating they have an outstanding warrant as a result of missing a jury appearance. They are then instructed to purchase large quantities of Money Pak pre-paid cards and provide the information on the back of the card to the caller. In the case of missing a jury summons, a person would only be notified in writing by the courts. If there were a warrant issued for someone’s arrest, law enforcement would come to your house to execute that warrant. This type of information would never be released over the telephone.
Scammers will say anything to get information from you to use for their benefit. They may claim to be affiliated with an entity you trust to convince you to offer personal information such as a credit card or your social security number. Telephone scams are prevalent and can target anyone. Please be aware of who you are speaking to and remember that any sort of tactic may be used to gather information. Do not be a victim. If someone calls you that you are not familiar with do not give out your information and hang up immediately.
Unfortunately, this type of fraud scheme dilutes people's trust or belief in who they're really speaking with. Please be mindful when dealing with suspicious phone calls. Do not give out personal information. To learn more about common fraud schemes visit the Internet crime Complaint Center (IC3) at https://www.ic3.gov. Should you have any questions or doubts about phone calls you are receiving please call Summit County Dispatch at 970-668-8600.
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