BELL COUNTY, Texas (KXXV) — Scammers are impersonating the Bell County Sheriff's Office, calling residents and claiming they missed jury duty and must pay a fine or face arrest.
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The Bell County Sheriff's Department has received hundreds of calls from residents who say they received these fraudulent messages.
"The general gist is that they have missed jury duty and they are saying that a fine has been imposed on them and then that fine amount varies," Sgt. Corey Powell said.
25 News also received a call from a viewer who answered one of these scam calls and was told there was a warrant out for his arrest. Some callers are even identifying themselves under fake names and claiming to work for the sheriff's office.
"We've seen it come from the sheriff's office, as in multiple other law enforcement agencies across the nation and, um, or from court systems. And so we just say that if you have a warrant, we don't send you a letter. We're, we're coming to look for you," Powell said.
Hundreds of residents across Bell County Facebook groups have also reported receiving calls from local numbers.
Investigators have been able to trace some of the calls, which are originating far outside the area despite appearing to come from local numbers.
"So they're using computer spoofing. They are, we've been able to track some, and they're coming from the Carolinas,"Powell said.
The scam is designed to pressure victims into sending money quickly. Deputies say there is an easy way to identify the calls as fraudulent.
"So a lot of people do call in and if you have given money, then you need to report to your local agency because that is fraud," Powell said.
The Bell County Sheriff's Office wants to remind residents that law enforcement will never call demanding money to keep someone out of jail. Anyone who receives a call like this should hang up and report it to the sheriff's office.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
