Orange County Sheriff's Office Warns Residents of Ongoing Phone Scams

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office issued guidance to the community Wednesday as residents continue to fall victim to phone scams.

The sheriff’s office shared a release with residents following a report of fraud on Monday. According to the office’s Community Watch Daily Report, a Hillsborough resident received a call from a scammer who used both the name of a sheriff’s deputy and caller ID of the office. Telling the victim she had missed a subpoena and court date, the scammer instructed her to buy pre-paid Visa gift cards, read their numbers over the phone and mail the cards to him.

This is the latest incident of an Orange County resident being contacted by a scammer posing as a sheriff’s deputy or sergeant, as multiple reports of similar scamming attempts were shared with the office in June.

Sergeant D. Roberson of the Sheriff’s Office Community Services Division says those committing such crimes typically use strategies targeting a person’s fear, causing them to act quickly and make mistakes.

“When people fall victim to such a scam,” he said in Wednesday’s release, “it is not unusual for them to realize their mistake almost immediately after losing access to their money. As soon as they follow the instructions about how to fix the problem, their rational mind takes back over. The anxiety that kept them from thinking clearly has been relieved and they have what we call “an ‘uh-oh moment.’”

Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood echoed these thoughts, saying the caller will often tell the victims they have outstanding warrants, have missed jury duty or must pay a fine to avoid an arrest.

“We frequently tell people there is no criminal or court matter that can be resolved with gift cards,” said Blackwood. “People who fall victim to this scam are often very embarrassed because in retrospect, the red flag was obvious. But in those few minutes when the victim believes he or she is in trouble, all he or she can think about is complying with the officer’s instructions to avoid the consequences.”

Roberson encourages people to talk to family, friends, and neighbors about such scams, since a separate phone call can sometimes confirm the falsity of a claim.

“There are various versions of these scams,” Roberson described. “One we hear often is a scam targeting older people where the caller poses as a grandchild in trouble. Most grandparents would do anything to help a grandchild, and once the anxiety shoots up, rational thought diminishes. Talking about these possibilities ahead of time helps people prepare and be less vulnerable to the effects of the anxiety and therefore avoid the trap.”

Blackwood said residents who are concerned after being contacted by someone supposedly from the sheriff’s office or claiming to have missed a court date to call 911 or the office directly.

Photo via the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.

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Orange County Sheriff’s Office Warns Residents of Ongoing Phone Scams

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