Woman Loses $3400 in ‘Sheriff’s Department’ Scam

A Bucks County woman recently lost approximately $3,400 to a scammer pretending to be an employee of the Bucks County Sheriff’s Department.

According to state police at Dublin, last month the 41-year-old Nockamixon Township resident received a phone call in which the caller claimed she needed to pay fines to avoid being arrested on an active warrant for failure to appear for jury duty.

“The victim obliged and sent cash via VanillaDirect Pay,” police said in a news release.

She later realized the call was not legitimate and contacted police on Sept. 17.

In response to the increasing popularity of this type of scam, the Bucks County Sheriff’s Office warned residents about it last year.

“The Bucks County Sheriff’s Office will NEVER call you on the phone or send you emails demanding money,” it said in a post on its Crimewatch site. “We will NEVER ask you for money over the phone or via email for any reason. We do not issue federal warrants or jury warrants via phone or email.”

The post noted that in some cases the office’s phone number may be displaying correctly, but told residents “it is a fake (“spoofed”) number.”

“Stay vigilant and remember that the Bucks County Sheriff’s Office will never ask you for money over the phone or internet,” it said. “If you receive such a call, it is a scam.”