(Lawrenceville, Georgia)  Phone scams are not a new trend, but law enforcement agencies are being used as a ploy to get unsuspecting victims to give up large sums of their hard-earned money.  Suspects are calling targeted victims claiming to be from the Gwinnett County Police Department or the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office.  They may even use the name of an active employee to sound more believable.

The caller will tell the victim that there are either active warrants for their arrest or overdue fines.  Next, the caller will convince the victim that in order to erase their warrant or fine, the victim must drive to a local grocery or convenience store, load a large sum of money on a money card, and then give the access codes to the caller.

Once the victim figures out that the transaction was a scam, it’s too late.  The money is withdrawn.   

As stated in the Phone Scam Warning flyer published by Gwinnett County, “Law enforcement and government agencies will not demand payment over the phone by a Green Dot card.” 

The Gwinnett County Police Department and the Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Office need to identify the suspects who perform these types of scams using our reputation and status in the community.  If anyone has any information to share in this case, please contact GCPD detectives at 770-513-5300.  To remain anonymous, tipsters should contact Crime Stoppers at 404-577-TIPS (8477) or visit www.crimestoppersatlanta.org.  Crime Stoppers tipsters can receive up to $2,000 for information leading to an arrest and indictment in this case.  Case Numbers: 18-009004, 18-009593, 18-009943

Click here to access a few reports and the Phone Scam Warning image.