Oakland County Sheriff’s Office warned residents not to fall for the latest telephone scam, which uses the Sheriff’s Office name and fictitious command staff to target registered sex offenders.
A man whose name is on the Michigan Sex Offenders Registry received a call from someone who identified himself as Sgt. Kennedy at the Sheriff’s Office; the only problem is the Sheriff’s Office doesn’t employ a person by the name of Sgt. Kennedy.
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“This is just another variant of all of the scams that we are seeing,” said Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard. “The common thread is someone in a purported position of authority demands immediate monetary action on your behalf to avoid an arrest or some other feared action. This is a scam. You will never be asked to provide immediate money over the phone or via similar conveyances like bitcoin or green dot cards by real government employees.”
The fake sergeant told a man that a warrant had been issued for his arrest because he’d failed to respond to a certified letter requiring him to report for a secondary DNA profile.
The phony sergeant told the man that a $20,000 bond with a 10% provision had been set, and to avoid arrest, the man could post $2,000 using virtual currency and a QR code that the fake sergeant provided for him.
Officials said the man withdrew $2,000 from his bank account and sent the funds from a bitcoin ATM as instructed.
Police say the man was contacted a second time by the phony sergeant and was told that he would need another $800 to clear up a federal warrant.
Officials say a relative of the man was on the way to the Oakland County Jail with the money and called the Sheriff’s Office, which is when he and his family member were told that the transaction was a scam and to stop further communication with the fake sergeant.
Officials say the case is still under investigation.