Phone Scammer Posing As Deputy Tricks Local Man
SMITHFIELD — A Smithfield man lost nearly $5,000 after falling victim to a jury duty scam in which a caller impersonated a Johnston County sheriff’s deputy and demanded payment to avoid arrest, according to a report filed with local authorities.
The 53-year-old victim told investigators he received a phone call from a blocked number on Jan. 30. The caller claimed he had missed jury duty in Johnston County court and said citations and arrest warrants had been issued against him.
Shortly afterward, the victim received a second call from a phone number that appeared to originate from the Johnston County Sheriff’s Office in Smithfield. Authorities say scammers frequently spoof caller ID numbers to make fraudulent calls appear legitimate.
Believing the claims were real, the victim followed instructions to withdraw cash from his bank account and deposit $4,900 into a local Bitcoin machine, after being told the charges would be retracted once payment was made.
The victim described the caller as aggressive and persistent, saying the conversation lasted more than 30 minutes.
After the money was deposited, the impersonator demanded additional funds. At that point, the victim realized he was being scammed and ended the call.
Law enforcement officials warn that jury duty scams are a recurring problem in Johnston County and across the nation, with multiple residents losing thousands of dollars in similar schemes.
Authorities say the scammers often use the names of real officers and spoofed phone numbers to create urgency and credibility. In some cases, victims have lost anywhere from a few thousand dollars to tens of thousands after being convinced immediate payment was required to avoid jail.
Officials emphasize that legitimate law enforcement agencies and courts will never demand payment over the phone, request cryptocurrency or gift cards, or threaten immediate arrest if money is not sent.
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17 Comments
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53 years old??? …… Has he had his head in sand? Does he not read local news? Does he think depositing money into a “machine” will clear jury duty failure to appear charges? …. OMGosh! Get real people!!!!
Come on, give the guy a break. I got a call like this a couple months ago, and in that moment, the “officer” on the phone sure sounded convincing! Fortunately, when I hung up, I called the sheriff, using the number on the county webpage, not the number provided by the grifters. The sheriff’s office confirmed “Yes Sir! This is a scam. But be wary, because there is not much we can do about this sort of fraud.” Maybe the sheriff should do more, and start a county educational campaign, since this seems to be getting worse!
What more can the sheriff do? What would you recommend the sheriff do? There comes a point in time that people need to use their intelligence and common sense, but sadly, the truth is, “common sense isn’t common”. Yes, these scammers are ruthless and there are all kinds of scammers out there, but the target of the scammers also have some culpability in that the victim was the unfortunate person who actually followed this scammers instructions to put almost $5k into a bitcoin ATM, which is scammers preferred way to get money. No legitimate court or government office accepts payment in bitcoin.
TODAY IS FRIDAY THE 13TH! This is not a scam!!
Come get me, got more time than money. This is the standard phrase when they call you for missing jury duty.
This is the correct answer. As the article states, IRS, courts, police do NOT call demanding money. They send certified mail or come to your door to serve papers.
Wow. Wonder if he’d like to buy a genuine 1922 Corvette with a Cummins diesel. Only $35,000. I’ll need cash.
I don’t understand how this keeps happening. Where are the family members looking after their mother, father, etc?
I could not finish reading this article because of the stupidity of the man that was scammed. All those red flags and you still took money out and put in a bitcoin machine. WOW!!
You keep calling old people stupid maybe when you get old someone will call you stupid
It isn’t necessarily stupidity. I have a dear friend who is a physician. When his child was in college out of state he received a call from his child saying there had been a minor wreck but the “lawyer” he was directed to needed x thousands of dollars. My friend had already started the ball rolling on the money when his little voice said to call the child. Well he was in his own apt asleep. The thieves used a voice copying program or app or whatever it is , so convincing it WAS the child’s voice! Thieves can always outsmart homest folks, so dont hesitate to hang up on any caller that sounds iffy.
53 is NOT old!! He really should have known better. He might as well have taken that money out and set it on fire. He’s sure not getting it back, either way.
Age has nothing to do with stupidity, for that reason I only pay in person with cash or precious metal !
Same story, different day. It is so sad that the folks with insecurities immediately post about how the victim is an idiot, indirectly stating that they are smarter lol. Not one post about our government allowing these scammers to use American infrastructure to rob people. They can do something about it they just choose not to.
I got the same call a year ago. my age is 68, the calls are very convincing, sound effects appear real, only when I got the call I grabbed my laptop, enter the address in where he gave instructions to deliver the money to ($500), guess inflation made this guy raise his price. the info on my laptop showed the address of the men’s jail. I kept quiet while he was talking, tried to barter the price, not happening. I played the role because I realized what was going on. I was lucky .
People you’ve got to learn!!!
Curious to know if these calls are on land lines or mobile numbers.