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Chesapeake Sheriff's Office warns of 'pending legal matter' scam

The sheriff's office said on Wednesday alone, they received more than 40 calls about this scam, and at least two residents have reported giving the scammer $15,000.

CHESAPEAKE, Va. — Chesapeake Sheriff's deputies are warning about another scam across the city.

This time around, scammers are demanding money for a "pending legal matter."

The Chesapeake Sheriff’s Office says out of the dozens of people these scammers called, at least two fell victim, handing over thousands of dollars.

When Lisa answered the phone this week, she didn’t expect who was on the other line or what they wanted.

"They were calling me about a subpoena. I was supposed to have been an expert witness in a court case and I didn’t show up for the subpoena and so, there was problems with that," she said.

Lisa, who did not want to give her last name for privacy reasons, said none of that is true.

She said the three people she spoke to gave her the names of real deputies and a real Chesapeake judge.

Then, they demanded $12,000.

"I said, 'I don’t know if you’re a scammer or not, I want to call the sheriff’s office and verify this' and they told me basically because of the 'gag order,' I couldn’t do that. I would be then breaking the order and I would be arrested and go to jail," she said. "They were using a lot of scare tactics if you pushed back against them."

For the last four days, people like Lisa have been calling the Chesapeake Sheriff’s Office about these scammers.

Undersheriff David Rosado said on Wednesday alone, 40 people called to report them.

"There was a person who was on the phone with the scammer that came to the office yesterday, and one of my lieutenants grabbed the phone and talked to the scammer and told him how horrible of a thing that he's doing," said Rosado. "You know what the scammer told him? He said he doesn't care, he does a really good job at this and makes a lot of money and he doesn’t care and just hung up the phone."

He said the scammers are able to give specifics about Chesapeake deputies and judges, as well as personal information, like your address.

Once they scare you, that's when they demand the money.

"There's a warrant for your arrest. There’s a fine that you have to pay if you don’t want to get arrested," Rosado said.

Though, none of that is true.

They'll claim to be someone from the "courthouse division" and demand payment for missing a court date. Sometimes they ask for payment through gift cards while other times, they want you to take cash to an unmarked car. At least twice, the scammer gave the victim a phony "receipt."

Staff with the sheriff’s office said at least two people fell victim to the call and met the scammers outside of a bail bondsman's office. They then handed over $15,000 in cash.

Credit: Chesapeake Sheriff's Office

Rosado said the sheriff’s office will never ask for money, let alone in the form of gift cards, and won’t give you a warning about being arrested. 

"Any time they are asking for money, for payments, we're not going to ask you for that. You'll get a letter in the mail and you'll have to come down to settle whatever matter at the courthouse," he said. "Hang up the phone. Hang up the phone as soon as you can. Call us and we’ll let you know."

Another small thing to notice is if the scammers are calling it the "sheriff's department," instead of their correct title, "sheriff's office."

Lisa said she hopes no one else falls for their tricks.

"I think that it’s a despicable thing to do. I think if they’re smart enough to come up with a scam this elaborate they could get a real job," she said.

Rosado also said the police department is actively investigating these scammers to make sure they don’t take advantage of anyone else.

He added it’s not just the community reading this story, but also the scammers themselves, so they could change their tactics. 

"As long as the information is coming out, and you can see what red flags are out there, if you have a funny feeling, or it doesn't seem right, that sixth sense, listen to it. Once again, hang up the phone."

If you get one of these scam phone calls, call the Chesapeake Police Department at 757-382-6161.

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