Fraud is rampant these days and even the Guilford County Sheriff’s Department isn’t safe from being used in scams.

On Tuesday, March 19, Sheriff Danny Rogers got so frustrated with the situation that his department sent out a public warning regarding a very popular scam in Guilford County right now.

Namely, scammers are pretending to be sheriff’s deputies and calling residents and demanding they pay fines to avoid being arrested.

“There have been numerous reports from citizens regarding unknown persons who were calling and identifying themselves as Deputy Sheriffs,” the warning reads. “It has been reported that the scam callers are claiming to be law enforcement officers and in some cases are using actual local law enforcement officers’ names from the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office.”

The scammers often claim that a court date or jury duty summons has been missed by the person called – and a warrant either has been or will be issued unless he or she pays a fine using pre-paid cards.

“These scammers often speak quickly and use an authoritative tone to put pressure on the citizen so he or she will agree to send money without question,” the statement adds. “The numbers that the reported scammers have called from recently are ‘spoofed’ numbers that begin with 336-641-**** which make it appear that it is an extension from the Guilford County Sheriff’s Office. Often these criminals use burner phones and the numbers that they call from may change frequently to avoid detection.”

As most people know, the Guilford County Sheriff’s Department will never ask that someone pay any fine over the phone by cash, credit card, pre-paid card, PayPal, CashApp, etc.

If someone thinks they owe a fine or if they have a question about a warrant or arrest, they should contact the Sheriff’s Department directly at 336-641-3690.

Anyone with information or questions regarding these scams is asked to contact the FBI by filing a report at www.ic3.gov – or you can call the Guilford County Sheriff’s Department at (336) 641-3690.

The department is also publicizing a list of rules meant to help you avoid being scammed:

• Don’t answer calls from numbers you don’t recognize.

• Don’t return one-ring calls from unknown numbers.

• If you do answer and it’s a robo-caller or you believe it to be a scam, just hang up without saying anything.

• Don’t press any buttons or give out any information.

• Remember that the Sheriff’s Department will never demand immediate payment over the phone, call or email you to verify your identity by asking for personal or financial information, ask for your credit or debit card numbers over the telephone or email, or demand that you meet someone to make a payment away from the window at the Sheriff’s Department.

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