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“If it seems too good to be true, it’s probably too good to be true,” was one of the pieces of advice offered by Coffee County Circuit Court Clerk Jenny Anthony and Coffee County Sheriff’s Department Investigator Jonathon Anthony. The husband and wife team were the guest speakers on fraud and prevention recently at Morning Pointe Assisted Living.

The duo have also presented the timely program at Brookdale, Parkview and numerous banks and businesses.

Jenny Anthony first shared examples of what is called jury duty scams. “A citizen gets a phone call and the caller acts as if they are a law enforcement officer. The scammer advises the citizen they missed jury duty and can pay an amount of money to keep from being arrested. Last week a citizen in Coffee County became a victim of a jury duty scam and lost over $19,000.”

“The caller advised they were a sergeant and advised the victim they had missed jury duty and her bond was $19,500. The victim was shown an image of a bond for $19,500. The victim was advised to go to the bank, withdraw the money and take the money to a bitcoin machine. The victim did as instructed.”

“The victim then received another message to withdraw another $19,500 and went to her bank. The teller at the bank explained to the victim she was being scammed and advised her not to withdraw more money.”

This week there have been two separate instances reported of jury fraud according to the Coffee County Sheriff’s office. The first victim received a phone call with the caller stating the victim missed jury duty and their fine was $3,000. The victim went to their bank, withdrew $3,000 and deposited the money into a bitcoin machine in Manchester.

The second victim was told they had missed jury duty and their fine was $2,000. This victim went to their bank, withdrew $2,000 and wired the money through Walmart. 

When citizens are instructed to serve on jury duty, they are mailed a paper notice from the Coffee County Circuit Court Clerk’s office according to Jenny Anthony. “The Circuit Court Clerk’s office or the Coffee County Sheriff’s office will never call and ask for any kind of money for missing jury duty.”

The duo advise if you receive these calls, hang up. If citizens have questions, contact the clerk’s office at 931-723’5110.

Another scam taking place is when land is put up for sale with Realtors by scammers using a fake id. Often the real landowner resides in another state. In the recent case, the Realtor felt something was off right before the closing. “Because the Realtor was proactive, a fraudulent land sale was stopped and money kept from being exchanged.”

Another scam involves Medicare and Medicaid when scammers will call a senior citizen to try and get specific pieces of information about the senior. The Anthonys suggest if you do not make the initial call to Medicare or Medicaid do not speak with the caller.

In some cases Investigator Anthony is able to recover money lost to scammers. “Recently there was a local case where the caller advised a citizen that their bank account was compromised. The victim made several withdrawals of over $125,000 and deposited the money into another account using a digital debit card the caller provided the victim.”

“Luckily, the victim kept some documentation from the deposits. We were able to issue search warrants and subpoenas and the scammer was identified in Miami and warrants were issued for his arrest. The scammer will be extradited back to Coffee County to face his charges here.”

The Anthonys suggest always be aware and proactive. Don’t respond to suspicious calls, text messages, emails or pop ups on your computer if you did not initiate the conversation. They also suggest never put money in a bitcoin machine.

If you feel you have been scammed, contact your bank and local law enforcement.

There will be a Scam Prevention and Awareness Event February 18th at noon in the Community Room at the Coffee County Administrative Plaza hosted by the Circuit Court Clerk’s office and the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department. The public is invited and encouraged to attend.