Astoria, OR – Astoria Police Department officials said that this type of scam is occurring throughout the state of Oregon and across the country.
According to the police officials, scams have variations but generally the caller will identify themself as a law enforcement officer and tell the victim, falsely, that a warrant has been issued because they missed a court date, did not show up for jury duty, have an overdue fine or something similar, and they will be arrested unless they pay right away.
These scam callers often use the names of actual local police officers, and other law enforcement agencies, and they may disguise their phone number to make it look like they are calling from a local law enforcement agency.
This practice of disguising the caller ID is known as “spoofing.” Sometime scammers will even email a victim fake law enforcement credentials to gain their trust.
Scam callers intimidate victims by demanding payment and threatening them with arrest if they do not cooperate.
They may demand that fines or fees by paid with money, credit cards, gift cards, payment apps, or even cryptocurrency. But no legitimate law enforcement agency in Oregon will ever call someone and demand money.
The best way for someone to protect themselves from these scams is simply to hang up, police officials said.
