Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo and Dauphin County Sheriff Nicholas Chimienti, Jr., warn about the renewed use of an old scam.  Scammers use spoofed telephone numbers made to appear to originate from the Dauphin County Sheriff.  The scammers call citizens informing them that they are in contempt of court for failure to appear for jury duty.  Caller ID will show that the call appears to originate from the actual telephone number of the Sheriff’s Office.  The scammer instructs the victim to purchase Green DOT MoneyPak cards to pay the fine and avoid going to jail.  The scammers stay on the telephone with the victims throughout the process and then take the funds remotely using the codes on the cards. 

This same scam is used throughout the country.  The Sheriff’s Office never takes money over the telephone.  If you receive one of these calls, we recommend that you inform the caller that you will call him back and hang up. You can then call the Sheriff’s Office at (717) 780-6590.