Pulaski County Sheriff Greg Speck warns the residents of Pulaski County of a scam that has affected some members of the community.

The Pulaski County Sheriff's Office has had two complaints today (Tuesday). In this scam, the caller will tell people that they have missed a court date; failed to show up for Jury Duty; or failed to appear at a Grand Jury hearing. They will usually want you to buy prepaid credit cards, such as Green Dot cards. The scammer will give a phone number for you to call. When you call, the scammer will ask you to read the numbers off the card. When you do this, they have your money. The scammer uses threats to make you think you have no other option but to pay or you will be arrested. Today’s incidents involved the scammers telling the potential victim that they are from the Pulaski County Sheriff's Office. You should know that the Pulaski County Sheriff's Office does not operate that way.

Sheriff Speck advises the public to “NOT SEND MONEY OR ANYTHING OF VALUE TO THESE INDIVIDUALS!” “DO NOT GIVE YOUR DRIVER'S LICENSE NUMBER, SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER, OR ANY OTHER PERSONAL INFO. TO ANYONE OVER THE PHONE". You should contact authorities in the area (law enforcement) to ascertain the validity of any call like this. Authorities would not contact you by phone to get money to keep someone out of jail.

Since many of these scam operations are located outside the continental United States, prosecution or recovery of the victim’s money is very difficult.