(WBBM NEWSRADIO) – The Cook County Sheriff’s Office is warning residents about a phone scam in which someone impersonating a staff member has tried to intimidate people into paying a “collateral bond.”
The fraudster tells victims they must pay the bond through a mobile banking app or risk going to jail.
Giving the ruse some appearance of credibility: The name used by the caller matches the name of an actual sheriff’s employee, and the phone number appears legitimate, too.
But it’s all fake, officials said. “The Sheriff’s Office does not request payments in this manner, nor does the Office accept payment via money transfer apps,” the department said in a news release.
Anyone who has been contacted to pay the money is urged to call the sheriff’s department at 708-865-4896 or 847-635-1188.
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