Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office warns of phone scammers impersonating as Pinellas captains, sergeants, and lieutenants. Adobe Stock
Beware of phone scammers impersonating as Pinellas County captains, sergeants, and lieutenants with the County’s Sheriff office.
“A suspect called a citizen and identified himself as ‘Captain Somers’,” according to a Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office press release.
After falsely identifying themselves, the suspect told the citizen they had two outstanding warrants due to missing jury duty. To clear the warrants, the suspect told the citizen they need to pay $3,000 through Zelle or Venmo.”
Don’t Fall for The Bit
PSCO said the agency and its personnel will never call residents asking for money. Additionally, the office would never ask for over-the-telephone, online payment, or wire transfers. They will also not ask for banking or personal information.
In August, PCSO said a fraudster called a resident identifying himself a “Sergeant Ryan Armstrong.”
“The suspect told the victim that she was going to be charged with failure to appear for a civil violation and a warrant was issued for her arrest,” PCSO said. “The victim was then transferred to multiple different males, claiming to be Jack Peterson and Lieutenant John Luckett.”
This scammer convinced the woman to buy various gift cards totaling more than $12,500 to resolve a bogus arrest warrant, according to police.
Other Florida police departments and other parts of the U.S. also report similar officer impersonation scams seeking money from potential targets.
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