CLEVELAND — It all seemed legitimate to Gabe Barrett.
On Tuesday, he received a phone call from someone identifying as a Trumbull County deputy saying he missed jury duty and a warrant was out for his arrest.
A scary situation, but not impossible. Barrett, a Trumbull County resident who works in Cuyahoga County, had received a summons for jury duty a couple months ago and filled out the form for an exemption. The phone number calling him was, in fact, the Trumbull County Sheriff's number.
"I’ve never dealt with this before," he said. "I’ve never dealt with warrants before ever in my life. In my younger days, I was in a little bit of trouble but I'm being compliant."
The voice on the other end, identifying as a deputy, then told him he needed to turn himself in, but he could post his bail beforehand to avoid jail time.
It wasn't until about two hours into the call, with cash in hand on his way to a bail bondsman in nearby Painesville (inside a gas station) that he realized it was all a hoax.
"The whole time there’s a few red flags," he said. "It was so real, they sounded real, everything they said was something like the police would say."
The number from the Trumbull County Sheriff's office ended up being spoofed.
"Real police do not have the kind of time to sit on the phone with you for endless amounts of time," Sheryl Harris, director of the Cuyahoga County Department of Consumer Affairs, told News 5 last month.
According to Cuyahoga County, residents "are reporting higher than usual numbers of scam calls from individuals posing as deputies who claim the resident has missed court appearances."
"Any call that you get about missed jury duty or a missed court appearance is a scam," Harris said. "These calls are very convincing."
Last month, Harris told News 5 that in addition to what happened to Gabe Barrett, they are also seeing a new iteration of the jury duty scam. This one involves thieves directing residents to official-looking websites, where they must enter their Social Security number, birthdate, and upload a driver's license to check if they have any outstanding "fines."
"We've had a couple people pay about $8,500-$10,000," Harris said.
The county advised keeping the following points in mind:
- Governments use “.gov” websites. County, federal and court websites do not use other domains, such as .org or .com, which are available to anyone.
- All calls, texts and emails about missed court appearances are scams. Courts send jury notices by U.S. mail, and no signature is required for delivery.
- Law enforcement officers never call people about missed court appearances or to request signature comparisons or fines.
- Never use callback numbers provided in vague messages about legal issues. They lead to scammers.
"If you're worried that you're about to be arrested or there could be a warrant out for you and you need that extra peace of mind, call your local police because they know these scams," Harris said.
"I was close, I was shaking because I was like, 'wow, I almost gave up a lot of money,'" Barrett said.
If you feel like you have fallen victim to a scam in Cuyahoga County, you can report it to the Cuyahoga County Scam Squad by calling 216-443-7226 or by CLICKING HERE.
