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The Park County Sheriff’s Office is warning residents about a fraudulent caller who’s representing himself as one of its sheriff’s deputies, telling residents they have a warrant …
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The Park County Sheriff’s Office is warning residents about a fraudulent caller who’s representing himself as one of its sheriff’s deputies, telling residents they have a warrant for their arrest. The caller, who has a heavy foreign accent, may also demand that the victim send money or gift cards to avoid arrest, the sheriff’s office said.
It’s a common scam and in this iteration, the caller has identified himself as “Sergeant Dan Walker” with the sheriff’s office.
“The Park County Sheriff’s Office does employ a Deputy Dan Walker but in no way do we get involved with warrant notification via the telephone,” Sheriff Scott Steward said in a news release last week. “And we never solicit or accept money as payment for warrants, especially over the telephone.”
Additionally, government agencies do not accept payments via gift cards.
The recent calls appeared to come from a number connected to the Park County Sheriff’s Office, but that’s only because the caller is deceptively “cloning” or “spoofing” that number — while hiding his real contact information.
One resident reached by the scammer told the caller to “go pound sand” and hung up, the release said. When the woman tried calling the number that appeared on her caller ID, she reached the actual sheriff’s office.
“If you receive a similar call, attempt to get as much information as possible from the caller including the caller ID number and report it to the sheriff’s dispatch at 307-527-8700,” said Lance Mathess, a spokesman for the sheriff’s office. “Above all, do not send any money or give the caller any personal information. Simply tell them that you will deal directly with the court.”
Anyone with questions about whether they have any active warrants can contact Circuit Court at 307-527-8590 and verify the information. Some warrants are also issued through the municipal courts (Cody at 307-527-7511 and Powell at 307-754-5106). A list of warrants is also available online by visiting https://pcso.crimegraphics.com/2013/default.aspx and clicking the “Warrants” link on the left side of the page.
