Dubuque Sheriff’s Office Is a Victim in Latest Phone Scam

The Dubuque County Sheriff's Office has a Facebook post with a blaring notice of a "SCAM ALERT!!!!!"

I pay close attention whenever I see ALL CAPS with that many exclamation points in a Sheriff's Office alert.

The message highlights that there is yet again a phone scam targeting vulnerable and unsuspecting citizens.

"Just a quick heads up to all of our followers out there, we have received several calls regarding a phone scam hitting our area the last couple of days," said the statement.

The scammers are audacious enough to use the Sheriff's Office itself in the scam. The statement goes on to say,

"The scammers are claiming to be Captain Dan Richman from the Sheriff's Office. The scam victim is the subject of a warrant for missing jury duty or some other minor infraction."

But the statement goes on to say,

"The caller then advises the victim they must pay over the phone to prevent them from being arrested. "

Amazingly, the scammers are using the name of Captain Richman, a natural person with no involvement whatsoever.

The Sheriff goes on to stress vigilant public attention on the phone calls. And they say that they will never call a person asking for personal banking information. Nor would they ever accept gift cards for payment. In addition, they rarely notify people by telephone when there is a warrant unless it has been prearranged by law enforcement and a suspect.

The alert goes on to share two significant phone numbers. The first is the number 563-600-2578, which the scammers are allegedly using.

The second is the dispatch number 563-589-4415. Call this number if you are a victim of this or any other scam. Again, you will be put into contact with a qualified officer.

Again, this is a severe alert and a good reminder that it's never wise to provide your personal financial information to a stranger over the phone during an unsolicited phone call. This is especially true if the caller claims to be a working officer of the Dubuque County Sheriff's Office or any other government agency at any level.