Sheriff Warns of Fake IRS and Jury Duty Calls
(Oakland County Sheriff’s Dept, Jan. 28, 2016)
INCIDENT:  10:15 hrs. – Jan. 27, 2016 – Springfield Township – Phone Scam / Impersonating a Deputy – #16-14204
SUMMARY:  The Springfield Township Substation received a phone call from a resident stating that a “Captain Watson” from the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office of the “Warrants / Citations Division” notified the resident of owing money for missing Jury Duty.  The resident never received Jury Duty notification and found this call to be suspicious in nature and contacted the Sheriff’s Office to report same.
OUTCOME OF INCIDENT:  An investigation into the resident revealed that they had no warrants for their arrest.  The name “Captain Watson” and the phone number provided were both fictitious. There is no “Warrants /Citations Division” within the Sheriff’s Office. 
ADDITIONAL STATEMENT:
The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office and the Sixth Circuit Court want to make the public aware of two different scams that have occurred throughout the county recently.
Suspects have called individuals claiming to be from the Oakland County 6th Circuit Court or the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office alleging that a warrant has been issued for the call taker’s arrest because they had not appeared in court for jury duty. The suspects proceeded to tell the call takers to pay a fine to take care of the warrant. Additionally, some residents have received calls from individuals claiming to be Sheriff’s Office employees or IRS agents, alleging that they must pay money to the IRS or they would face being arrested.
The Sheriff’s Office and the 6th Circuit Court advises that if anyone receives a call from anyone from these entities requesting money, either regarding fees to appear for jury duty or owing taxes, they should immediately contact local law enforcement and under no circumstances make payments.
“No law enforcement agency or court make intimidating phone calls and demand money from citizens,” said Sheriff Michael J. Bouchard. “We ask everyone to be vigilant and to trust your instincts if you receive these type of calls. These phone calls unfortunately target innocent individuals and these scam artists use legitimate names to try and cheat people out of money.”
Chief Circuit Court Judge Nanci J. Grant stated, “The Circuit Court does not call residents and threaten them to pay fines for not reporting to jury duty. In these cases, the individuals were not even serving jury duty at the time. Please report these incidents immediately to your local law enforcement agency.”
Questions regarding jury duty service can be directed to the Oakland County Jury Office at (248) 858-0029.