The Bibb County Sheriff’s Office has received several reports of an unidentified phone scammer. According to the victims of the phone scam, the calls have been received from a recorded message or live caller. The caller is claiming that he is a deputy that works in the Bibb County Warrants Division or Citation Division.
The record message contains the victim’s name and notification of a fictitious arrest warrant for missing jury duty. The names used by the suspects will vary as will the callers. There are several different suspects involved in this scam. In one of the most recent cases, the intended victim was instructed to call the number, 478-721-4562. (This is a spoofed number that does not belong to the Bibb County Sheriff’s Office). “Spoofing” is technology that allows a criminal to call from one phone number and make it appear as if he is calling from another number. That means that these calls could appear to originate from many different phone numbers. When the victim calls the number the voice mail identifies the number as the “Bibb County Sheriff’s Office” and the victim is instructed to leave a message. The scammer then calls the victim back with warnings of consequences designed to frighten the victim into wiring money to the scammer in order to avoid arrest. Bibb Sheriff’s Investigators are aware and actively working this case.
If you receive a call like this, write down the caller’s number, hang-up, and then call the Bibb Sheriff’s Office at 478-751-7500 or contact your local law enforcement agency.
Remember – Bibb Sheriff’s Deputies, police officers, or court officers will never phone a citizen asking for payment of any kind. As an added precaution, the Bibb Sheriff’s Office is recommending that you never provide personal or financial information to any caller or unsolicited contact.
These scams can have many variances. The caller may claim to be from another jurisdiction, (county other than Bibb), or they may claim to represent federal law enforcement. Please share this information with others, especially the elderly.
If you are in doubt, please contact the agency the caller claims to be representing to verify information. For more information on scams such as this please contact the Sheriff’s Outreach Section at 478-803-2710.