“You have a warrant out for your arrest. If you pay $2,000 you will avoid jail time.”
Those are words you will NEVER hear from a legitimate police department or sheriff’s office—not over the phone, not in person, not by text message, and not by email, according to a warning issued by the Alameda Police Department (APD) on Facebook.
It’s a scam, perpetrated by con artists impersonating officers from both APD and the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO). Don’t fall for it, both agencies warn. Just hang up immediately and call APD (510-337-8340) or ACSO (510-272-6878) immediately, using a verified number to confirm the call’s authenticity.
Here’s how the scam works, according to APD:
- The victim receives a call that appears to come from an official APD or ACSO number. This can happen with the use of spoofing technology, where scammers manipulate the caller ID to show a local number that appears like a government agency (or business) you know.
- The scammer claims to be an officer or deputy, stating you have a warrant for a missed court date or unpaid citations.
- To sound legitimate, they may use personal information they found online. They may reference a previous address or mention names of relatives.
- Once they have established fear that their information and threat may be real, the scammer will give you the option to pay immediately to avoid your “pending arrest” or to clear up your “citations.”
- Some scammers may even claim there is a “gag order” in place, to discourage you from telling anyone about the call.
These elaborate steps are a part of what is called an imposter scam, APD notes. This can happen not only with law enforcement agencies, but with other city departments, government agencies, businesses, and banks…