ALEXANDRIA, Va. — The U.S. Marshals Service for the Eastern District of Virginia is warning the public about a phone scam.
A news release says the scammers are spoofing the district office's real phone numbers to trick people into sending money, which is known as "neighbor spoofing."
“Offices from the Eastern District of Virginia are receiving calls from people asking why the Marshals are requesting money from them,” said Deputy U.S. Marshal Brian Stalnaker of the Eastern District of Virginia. “We want people to know these calls are scams.”
The news release says that during the calls, scammers are asking to collect a fine so that victims can avoid arrest for failing to report to jury duty or other offenses. The scammers then tell the victims they can avoid arrest by purchasing a store gift card or prepaid debit card and read the card number over the phone.
The scammers have also reportedly been asking for cryptocurrency payments.
“Scammers use many tactics to sound credible. They sometimes provide information like badge numbers, names of actual law enforcement officials and federal judges” stated U.S. Marshal Shannon Saylor of the Eastern District of Virginia. “These calls are becoming more prevalent in our area, and we want to educate the public on these types of scams.”
Anyone who believes they were a victim of this scam should report it to your local FBI office and to the Federal Trade Commission.
The release reminds residents that U.S. Marshals will never ask for card numbers, wire transfers or bank routing numbers for any reason. Residents are advised not to give out personal or financial information to an unknown caller.
"If you believe that you are being scammed over the phone, hang up and call a verified number for the agency being represented by the caller. You can talk to an authentic employee of that agency about the caller’s claims."
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