By Gary Lloyd
JEFFERSON COUNTY — The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office has received numerous calls concerning a scam that is again going around.
According to reports, a man identifying himself as an investigator with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office calls. The suspect uses a technology known as “spoofing” to make the victim’s caller I.D. show that the call is from the sheriff’s office.
He tells victims that they owe money to the Internal Revenue Service and that a warrant has been issued for their arrest. They are then told the warrant can be dismissed if they get a pre-loaded debit card and then send the information to him. There is never any warrant and the man does not represent the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office.
The sheriff’s office doesn’t conduct business this way. The sheriff’s office doesn’t collect money for fines or court costs. That responsibility belongs to the court clerk’s offices.
An investigation into the scam and the identity of the caller is under way.
For information from the IRS about this scam, visit http://www.irs.gov/uac/Tax-Scams-Consumer-Alerts.
If you have received one of these calls that displayed the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office’s telephone number, you should file a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission at https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov/hc/en-us.
Contact Gary Lloyd at news@trussvilletribune.com and follow him on Twitter @GaryALloyd.