SPOKANE VALLEY, Wash. — Police are sounding the alarm on a well-known scam with a new twist.
Spokane County Sheriff’s Office says they often receive reports of scammers posing as law enforcement and demanding payment from people to avoid arrest.
In the newest version of the ruse, scammers are using publicly accessible arrest records to contact family members of people who are in custody.
The scammer will pose as law enforcement and try to persuade the victim to pay in exchange for their incarcerated loved one’s early release.
According to SCSO, a recent victim was called by a scammer who said their name was Sergeant Young. The scammer told the victim a family member had been jailed for a DUI and provided the correct name of the person, taken from the public records. The scammer tried to coax the victim into paying $1,250 via online payment platforms like Venmo and Zelle.
“Always, if you receive an unsolicited call, text or email from a business, government agency, banking institution or law enforcement agency, where they are demanding immediate action (call/click) to provide payment or personal/banking information under threat of negative consequences. it’s probably a scam,” said SVPD.
The best way to protect yourself from scams is to hang up, or ignore an email or text and contact the agency the communication appeared to be from directly to verify if it is legitimate.
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