Sheriff Russell Warns Residents of Phone Scams

The Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office, along with other law enforcement agencies in our region, has received reports from residents recently involving various phone scams. The caller may identify themselves as a representative for the IRS calling for taxes owed; a representative of a local utility company calling to collect a past due bill, or even a local law enforcement agency stating a warrant has been issued because you missed court but that it can be paid off over the phone.

You will be asked to obtain a Green Dot type cash card and give them the account information or to give them your personal credit card information. A third payment option may be wiring money to an account number using Western Union. These are just three examples of these type scam calls and there are several variations used nationwide, but the common link is that all ask for cash to be wired, credit card information or a cash card purchase.

Sheriff Russell reminds residents to never give out credit card or other personal information to unsolicited calls received of this nature as they are scams. None of the agencies listed ever contact anyone by phone demanding payment be made by cash card or credit card. Don’t assume the ID information of the caller displayed on your phone is accurate as any phone number can be masked.

Should you receive any calls of this nature or that you suspect is a scam, notify your local law enforcement agency.