The Blount County Sheriff’s Office has issued a public warning on social media about a recent increase in scam calls. The scammers are impersonating sheriff’s deputies and concocting situations in which unsuspecting victims are told that a loved one is in jail and in need of bail money. In another variation, callers are falsely informed they have missed jury duty, have an outstanding warrant, or owe fines and are instructed to make payments over the phone.
According to a Facebook post by the Blount County Sheriff’s Office, these scam calls can be quite persuasive, with criminals often using the names of current deputies and spoofing the sheriff’s office main phone line “to make it appear even more legitimate.” The post warns the public to be wary of such calls, noting that deputies will never call someone to inform them their loved one is in jail and needs bond money. It also highlights that payment requests for fines are not conducted over the phone but in person at the court clerk’s office.
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