PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A new phone scam has come to the attention of the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts.
AOPC and Supreme Court of Pennsylvania Communications Director Stacey Witalec said they are being made aware of scam phone calls targeting Philadelphia residents. They use the AOPC office as a cover to try and scam people out of money.
"During the call, the caller will tell the targeted resident that they have unpaid court fines and outstanding fees," Witalec detailed. "Should those fees not be paid, they will be placed on Pennsylvania's sex offender registry."
Related
She suggested to never make payments or give your personal information to anyone claiming to be calling from the state court system.
"The courts will never place calls or solicit payment by credit card, gift card or any other means of electronic funds transfer for any reason," Witalec said.
Nobody gets put on a sex offender list by failing to pay a court fee, according to Witalec.
"We have seen scams of this nature, but this is the first time where we have one where they are suggesting they would place someone on a sex offender registry," Witalec explained.
She said that if you get a call of this nature, you should inform state or local law enforcement as well as the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General Bureau of Consumer Protection.