Sheriff warns against new phone scam targeting families of recently arrested/incarcerated suspects
CONTRIBUTED BY LCSO
LEE COUNTY — The Lee County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) is warning citizens of a new phone scam targeting families of recently arrested/incarcerated individuals.
LCSO recently received a message from a mother whose son was recently arrested. She received a call from someone claiming to be a corrections officer named Clark Thomas with the Lee County Jail. The scammer told the mother that there was a program where she could pay $500, payable through electronic payments, to have a GPS tracker given to her son and have him placed on house arrest instead of being in jail.
Scammers like the one in this instance are very smart, and they use emotions, panic and fear to prey on their victims, according to a press release from LCSO.
“They will use all available information along with the reactions of their potential victims to adjust their tactics to maximize the amount of money they are able to squeeze out of their victim and to have that money before the victim has time to second-guess if the scammer is legitimate or scamming them.
“LCSO would like to remind everyone that there is no such program through the Lee County Detention Center (LCDC), and no one named Clark Thomas is employed at LCDC,” the press release stated.
LCSO issued the following general reminders to help prevent citizens from falling prey to phone scams like this one or the common jury duty scam:
“We will not require you to make any payments over the phone or to meet us anywhere to make a payment for any reason.
“We do not accept, and will not request, electronic payments such as apple pay, cashapp, venmo, zelle or paypal for any payments.
“We do not accept, and will not request, gift cards, prepaid Visa cards, bitcoin, or yellow card for any payments.
“We will not argue or get angry if you say that you want to hang up and call the main line number to verify the caller and their information is correct.
“If you ever receive a call, text, or e-mail from someone saying they work for us and want to double-check that it is real, please hang up and call our main line number, (334) 749-5651.
“Do not give or verify any information to the caller if you did not initiate the call, even if your caller ID shows the name/number of the business they claim to be calling from. Scammers can easily “spoof” a number to make it look like they’re calling from anywhere they want.
“We do not have a GPS tether/tracking/house arrest program.
“You will NOT receive a call, text, or e-mail from us or one of our Deputies about jury duty, missing jury duty, or a warrant for your arrest in relation to jury duty. This is the most common scam attempt call reported to us.”
Anyone who receives a call claiming to be from LCSO, LCDC, or any other law enforcement agency, they are encouraged to hang up and call the main number for the agency directly.
The FTC also has a page located at reportfraud.ftc.gov where the public can file a report about an attempted scam. In 2024, 18,764 fraud reports we filed by people in Alabama, with a median loss of $400 and a total of $70.4 million lost by Alabama citizens.
Care Humane Society warns of ‘lost pets’ scam
CONTRIBUTED BY CARE HUMANE SOCIETY
EAST ALABAMA — CARE Humane Society warning the community regarding a recent scam targeting pet owners that uses impersonation tactics to exploit individuals looking for their lost pets.
In a two-week period, CARE received reports of three scam attempts. Scammers are using blocked or fraudulent phone numbers to impersonate CARE and local veterinary clinics, making their calls seem legitimate.
Scammers keep a close eye on lost-and-found pet posts, targeting concerned owners by falsely claiming they found their missing animals in critical condition. Posing as CARE or local vet, they call the owner and demand immediate payment for urgent medical treatment.
CARE Humane Society will never request an upfront payment for any medical treatment. Additionally, the organization does not have an on-site veterinarian and is not authorized to provide or charge for medical services.
Pet owners are urged to always verify the identity of the caller and confirm the location of their pet before taking action. We recommend seeing your pet in person to confirm their safety prior to any payment. If a scam is suspected, report them immediately to local authorities or animal services.
CARE is committed to protecting pets and their owners from these scams. By staying informed and cautious, pet owners can help to stop them.
To gain more information or report scams, head to the Alabama Attorney General’s Office website at www.AlabamaAG.gov or call (334) 242-7300.
