On Friday, September 13th, the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a scam involving criminal imposters claiming to be detectives with the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office. The criminal imposters were found to be spoofing actual numbers used by the HCSO. It was reported these same criminal imposters are also claiming to be agents with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the U.S. Social Security Administration, and the Internal Revenue Service.
The scammers tell the victim they are under investigation for crimes and use fear, intimidation, and coercion, demanding the victim wire money to a specified bank account or face arrest and/or prosecution.
This scam has been confirmed by the HCSO Criminal Investigation Division. The HCSO would like to remind our community that no law enforcement agency will ever ask anyone to wire money to a bank account. Furthermore, citizens are encouraged to never give personal information over the phone if you cannot confirm the caller or agency’s identity.
If you have been a victim of a scam please notify your local law enforcement agency.
Useful Internet Links:
How to report fraud in Tennessee: https://www.fraudguides.com/report/tennessee/
Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance: https://www.tn.gov/commerce/consumer/scams-schemes-swindles.html
The Federal Bureau of Investigation: https://www.fbi.gov/scams-and-safety
Office of Inspector General (Social Security): https://oig.ssa.gov/newsroom/news-releases/april1-advisory
