Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele and Montgomery County Sheriff Sean P. Kilkenny are alerting the public to a phone scam that has returned to our area where the perpetrator impersonates a Montgomery County sheriff.

In the call, the scammer tells the resident that a warrant has been issued for their arrest for failing to show up for jury duty, but they can avoid arrest by providing payment to the sheriff’s department.

“Residents of Montgomery County should be aware that arrest warrants are never dealt with in this way,” said District Attorney Steele. “If a warrant is issued due to a failure to appear in court, no money is required to clear it. These matters must be addressed in a courtroom before a Judge of the Court of Common Pleas. Anyone who has received one of these fraudulent calls should immediately report it to Montgomery County Detectives.”

The typical pattern for these scam phone calls is the scammer will call from a spoofed (fake) phone number that looks like it is coming from the local Montgomery County area code of 610. The scammer will identify themselves as a “Sergeant” with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Department. He will address the resident who answers the phone by name and will know the resident’s address and other information, which makes the call seem legitimate to the recipient. The scammer will tell the resident that there is a current arrest warrant—or an arrest warrant is in the process of being issued—for their failure to appear in Court, such as failing to appear for jury duty, and tells them that the warrant can be dismissed by paying a fee. The scammer instructs the resident to deposit cash at a local Bitcoin ATM for the bond but claims that the judge issued a Gagnon order so the resident cannot tell anyone. The scammer will tell the resident to stay on the line during the entire process, even when going to the bank to withdraw the funds and make the deposit at the ATM.

“Our personnel do not operate in this manner,” said Sheriff Kilkenny. “Sheriff personnel will never call a resident to demand money to satisfy a warrant or demand money for any reason.”

If someone receives this scam call or message and is worried that it may be legitimate, he or she can call the main Courthouse phone number of 610-278-3000 and ask for the Sheriff’s Department. Calling the Courthouse main number and then being transferred to the Sheriff’s Department will avoid any issue of spoofed numbers.

Anyone who has been a victim of one of these calls and turned over money to the fraudster is asked to contact the Montgomery County Detective Bureau at 610-278-3368 to speak to a detective.

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