Mercer County Sheriff Jack Kemler has issued a warning to area residents regarding telephone scammers posing as Mercer County Sheriff’s Officers.
Over the past several days, the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office has received numerous complaints from the public regarding jury duty-related scam calls. The caller claims the resident had failed to appear for jury duty and that law enforcement was being sent to their house with an arrest warrant. The caller also attempts to garner or verify the actual address of their home. Several call recipients suspected something was wrong and smartly refused to confirm or provide their addresses.
The calls spoof a 609-area code and falsely seem to originate from a real law enforcement agency. The calls are difficult to trace because they are often digitally masked or generated from phone banks out of state. “While the fictitious calls remain under investigation, the community must be vigilant,” noted Kemler. If a resident suspects a particular telephone call may be a scam, do not give out any personal information and simply hang up. Reporting any such call to the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office at 609-989-6111 is equally important.
“It is important to remember that the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office or court officers will never ask for confidential or personally identifying information over the telephone. We adhere to this strict policy, and any deviation from it should be treated as a potential scam,” added Kemler.
