Tom Green Co. Sheriff's Office Warns Residents of Another Round of Scam Calls

TOM GREEN COUNTY, Texas — Another group of scammers is at work trying to convince Tom Green County residents to send them money by threatening to arrest them.

The Tom Green County Sheriff's Office sent out an alert Friday to notify residents of a recent rash of imposter scams involving people pretending to be Tom Green County deputies or other law enforcement officials. laws.

These scams resulted in the loss of thousands of dollars, TGCSO said.

During the calls, the scammers attempt to collect a fine in lieu of arrest by making various allegations such as failing to appear for jury duty, failing to appear as a witness, or having outstanding arrest warrants. They tell victims they can avoid arrest by withdrawing money and transferring it to the caller, purchasing a prepaid debit card or gift card and reading the number over the phone to pay for the fine, or using other means of electronic money transfer.

Scammers use different tactics to appear credible and sometimes provide information such as badge numbers, names of real law enforcement officials, judges, and addresses of court offices. They also spoof their phone numbers to appear on caller IDs, as if they are calling from a government agency or court.

The Sheriff's Office never solicits funds or payments over the telephone.

• Never rely solely on caller ID, the phone number displayed can be manipulated.
• Always consider sending unsolicited or unknown phone calls to voicemail. Many scam call centers don't leave a message.
• Never click on links in unsolicited emails or text messages. The links may take you to fake websites or deploy malware.
• Protect your personal and financial information. Never provide this information in response to unsolicited text messages, emails, or social media posts claiming to be from a government agency.

If you receive a call that you think is a scam, the best thing to do is hang up.

If you are a victim of one of these scams, contact the Tom Green County Sheriff's Office at 325-655-8111.