Phone Scam Alert: Callers Say They Are From The Santa Cruz County Sheriff

Report By Sergeant Patrick Dimick, Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office

The Sheriff’s Office would like you to be aware of recent and ongoing phone scams that residents have been experiencing. The most common recent scams involve the scammer representing themselves as a member of the local Sheriff’s Office claiming that the victim missed jury duty for which there is a warrant for his or her arrest, or that they owe fines or taxes. The phone scammer threatens that the victim will be arrested unless they make payment over the phone.

Do not reveal any credit card or monetary account information to the caller. The Sheriff’s Office does not accept payment over the phone for any reason. The Sheriff’s Office does not accept payment for fines, warrants, missing jury duty or outstanding taxes over the phone. 
Do not provide personal identifying information about yourself or family member (address, date of birth, social security number) to people who may call you, this is an indication of a Scam or Identity Theft.

If money is legitimately owed to a government entity, the first contact you receive will not be a demand for payment. If you are questioning the validity of a phone call, obtain the agency name they work for, name of the caller, and badge number or operator number of the caller as well as a return phone number for the caller. However, do not call the number the caller provided. Instead, look up the phone number in the phone book or on the internet for the agency the caller claims to represent. You can check the validity of the phone call and the information given you during the phone call by calling that official agency.

You can report phone scams or suspicious phone calls to www.IC3.gov and notify the Sheriff’s Office by calling the Sheriff’s Office community center in your area or by calling dispatch at 831-471-1121.