SCAM ALERT: Scammer Pretending To Be With Morris Sheriff

MORRIS COUNTY, NJ — The Morris County Sheriff's Office is warning county residents of a telephone scam which fraudulently used the sheriff's office's name in an effort to get personal information. A release from the office says the scammer was a man and threatened the intended victim, saying they had an active warrant.

The release says scammers also tell victims they can buy gift cards and provide those numbers.

The sheriff's office is reminding the public that they will never solicit private or financial information over the phone.

The sheriff's office's Warrants Squad will, from time to time, call individuals overdue on child support payments after official notification by letter.

If you believe you may have been contacted by a scammer, call the sheriff's office at 973-285-6600 during the day and at 973-285-2900 after hours. To see if a warrant is legitimate, call 973-285-6640.

"In the event you receive a call from a person purporting to be a Morris County Sheriff’s Officer or from a law enforcement agency, never give personal or financial information over the telephone. Never agree to meet such a caller at any random location. Hang up and verify the legitimacy of the call by dialing an official, listed number for the agency," Morris County Sheriff James M. Gannon said in the release.

Similar scams surfaced in Morris County in 2018 and 2019, the release says, in which scammers tried to get victims to pay for false warrants, fees IRS payments and more through Green Dot MoneyPak cards.

The sheriff's office offers these tips in relations to phone scams:

• Legitimate law enforcement agencies will not tell people to provide money card information to avoid arrest.
• Be suspicious of callers who demand immediate payment for any reason.
• Never provide personal or financial information to anyone who emails or calls you, unsolicited.
• Never wire money, provide debit or credit card numbers or Green Dot MoneyPak card numbers to a stranger.
• Remember that anyone who has the number of a Green Dot MoneyPak card has access to funds on the card.
• If you receive a scam phone call, try to gather names, the incoming telephone number and other details, and immediately report the call to local police.