Warrant phone scams continuing in Albany

ALBANY — Officials with the Dougherty County Sheriff’s Office say they are continuing to get reports of people receiving scam phone calls asking for money to settle an arrest warrant for failure to appear.

Capt. Craig Dodd said the first individual known to pay any money was victimized on June 27, with a total of six known victims who have lost money. Over the weekend alone, there were 25 calls received by the sheriff’s office from people who were contacted by the scam artists.

Dodd said the alleged scammer, or scammers, under the names of Lt. Mike Harris and Deputy Bryan Hollis with the phone numbers (229) 529-3147 and (229) 429-2865 are calling people to tell them they did not show up for jury duty and that a judge has issued a warrant for their arrest. The victims are also told they will be arrested unless they pay a fee, and then they will get a court date.

The fee, he said, varies between $500 and $2,000, with the average being about $1,200-$1,500. The caller then says the fee must be paid using PayPal MyCash cards over the phone and they have to go to their bank, get cash and then go to a Dollar General or Fred’s to purchase the cards. They further add that they have to stay on the phone with them the entire time and need a cell phone number, and if the call is disconnected, deputies will come arrest them.

When the victim provides a cell number, the call is transferred to that number. After the victim purchases the PayPal cards and gives them the pin number, the call ends and the suspect(s) transfer the money from the PayPal account, Dodd said.

Dodd said some potential victims are also being told to meet the caller at the sheriff’s office late at night with the PayPal cards. Officials with the sheriff’s office are not aware of any victims who have followed through with that particular request.

At a news conference on June 29, Dodd said there was someone by the name of Mike West making similar demands. On Monday, he emphasized a point from the earlier news conference about how people are notified of arrest warrants.

“We don’t call. We come to your door,” he said. “We will come to your job if we have to if you are wanted.”

Aside from Dollar General and Fred’s, Family Dollar, CVS and Rite-Aid are among the others selling PayPal cards. Dodd said sheriff’s office officials are asking cashiers and managers at these stores to be vigilant when it appears the person buying the cards may be a potential victim.

To date, at least one victim has been identified this way, Dodd said.

“If someone comes in asking to purchase three PayPal cards at $500 each, (we encourage) the manager to ask where it is coming from,” the captain said. “A Dollar General manager helped thwart this. There was an elderly lady who was told to pay $1,500.

“Fifteen years ago, when these scams were first starting, Harvey’s was good about questioning people at Western Union.”

Dodd said it appears that senior citizens are the ones most commonly targeted. Officials also said that similar phone scams have been associated with the numbers (404) 519-9133, (302) 257-5654 and (856) 441-6885.

It appears the callers are primarily using “throw away phones,” he said.

These calls are popping up as jury summons notices are mailed out, Dodd said. He added that authorities are working with PayPal and other entities to track down the callers, who seem to be familiar with those working in the Dougherty judicial system.

On Saturday, officials with the Albany Police Department said they were receiving similar reports. Phyllis Banks, spokeswoman for the APD, said a man using the name Michael Nixon was calling from (229) 429-2865 telling people they have missed a grand jury or superior court summons and that Dougherty Superior Court Chief Judge Willie Lockette had issued a warrant against them, and that they can pay by phone by getting a pre-paid card from Walmart or Walgreen’s.

Those who receive such a call are encouraged to hang up and contact police. Dodd said the callers would be facing charges if caught.

Also, Banks said someone is calling citizens and asking for donations to purchase bullet proof vests for police officers. She said APD is not working with any organization for this cause, and that those who ever have questions about someone collecting donations on behalf of APD or any law enforcement agency should call the agency and confirm before giving.