Ward 2 City Councilor J.T. Scott has been sounding the alarm about a malicious phone scam currently taking place locally.

By The Times Staff

A sophisticated scam operation that targets individuals has City Councilors concerned.

The phony phone arrest scam was brought up in conversation at the latest City Council Meeting on February 27 with the aim of warning residents and bringing awareness to these harassing calls.

“There have always been scammers,” said Ward 2 City Councilor J.T. Scott. “Particularly, they prey on residents who may not have English as a first language or some of our elderly residents.”

Councilor Scott received a scam call allegedly from the Middlesex Sheriff’s Office explaining that he failed to appear for jury duty. Councilor Scott said that the scammers then said he would be arrested.

“This is clearly a shakedown, it’s clearly a scam,” he said.

Scammers who prey on residents by posing as trusted members of law enforcement may attempt to demand payment for things like failing to appear for jury duty, according to a press release from the Middlesex Sheriff’s Office.

The crank caller apparently provided a name, badge number and said they were on a recorded line. Councilor Scott said that the caller ID on his cell phone was the number from the Middlesex Sheriff’s Office.

“It looks very legitimate,” Councilor Scott said. “Nobody is going to arrest you for missing jury duty,” he later added.

Councilor Scott says he contacted the Sheriff’s office after the crank call and told his story. According to the Sheriff’s Office, this issue was “happening a lot.”

“If it’s happening a lot, I would like to make sure our residents know about it,” said Councilor Scott. “Just like many of the other scams that our council has raised awareness of over the years, this is one that is particularly alarming.”

Law enforcement professionals will never contact individuals over the phone to pay non-existent fines or fees for missing jury duty, according to a press release from the Middlesex Sheriff’s Office.