I have been warning you about the jury duty scam for thirteen years, but it continues to snare many unwary victims.   Recently Joey Amour Jackson and Lance Riddle were convicted of charges related to operating a nationwide jury duty scam in which they phoned their scam victims and told them that arrest warrants had been issued for them due for missing jury duty.  The victims were told they were under gag orders and could not speak about their arrest warrants until they had paid for a bond or they would be arrested.  The victims were told to pay for the bonds by purchasing gift cards and give the card numbers to the scammers over the phone.  What is particularly noteworthy about these particular scammers perpetrated their scams while already being prisoners of the Calhoun State Prison in Georgia for other offenses.  They used smuggled cell phones to make their calls.

Often in these scams you are told that you can pay the fine through a credit card or, as was done in this instance by gift cards.  And now more frequently you are told to pay the “fine” through a Bitcoin ATM. Other times they ask for your Social Security number to confirm your identity.  Of course, the phone call is a scam.  Even if you have missed jury duty, you will never be called by legitimate court officers and shaken down for a payment.

Often, as in this case,  the scammers will use a technique called “spoofing” to make the call appear on your Caller ID as if it is coming from a legitimate law enforcement agency or court.  In some instances of the scam you are asked to confirm your identity by providing your Social Security number which will then be used to make you a victim of identity theft.  Recently the scam has evolved to where people are also being contacted by text messages or emails from scammers posing as a representative of the local court system.

TIPS

Initial contacts from courts regarding jury duty are always in writing through the mail although some systems will permit you to receive future notices through email.  Under no circumstances will you receive telephone calls or text messages indicating that you have failed to report for jury duty.  No court will demand payment over the phone for failing to appear for jury duty and no court ever requires a payment be made via cryptocurrencies.  If you do receive such a call and you think that there is even the possibility that you might have forgotten to report for jury duty, merely call the local clerk of courts in order to  get accurate information. Of course anyone calling you and telling you that you can pay your fine to them over the phone using your credit card or a gift card is a scammer.

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