Man warns of sophisticated scam after caller poses as Pinellas County Sheriff's Office
Pinellas County man warns of sophisticated phone scam
A Pinellas County man wants you to know about a sophisticated scam he almost fell for so you don't become a victim. He got a call from someone claiming to be Chief Hobbs with the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office. FOX 13's Chris Cato explains.
LARGO, Fla. - A Pinellas County man is warning the public after nearly falling victim to a complex phone scheme involving fake warrants and demands for wired cash.
Phone scam targeting residents
What we know:
Ben Wagner said he was at work when he received a call from someone posing as "Chief Hobbs" with the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.
The caller claimed Wagner had a warrant out for his arrest for missing a jury summons.
To make the story believable, the caller emailed a fake warrant that included Wagner's correct name, listed charges and the sheriff's name. Wagner said the details seemed legitimate, and he even looked up the names online while trying to verify the information.
"This doesn't seem normal," Wagner said. "But again, my son was home and the last thing I wanted my son to see is dad getting handcuffed in the front yard."
Step-by-step instructions
Dig deeper:
The scammer instructed Wagner to drive to the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office on Ulmerton Road while keeping him under a fake gag order so he would not tell anyone.
However, his wife tracked his location using Find My iPhone.
"Thankfully, my wife is tracking me," Wagner said. "We have Find My iPhone, and she was able to say I'm concerned about you, and I'm going to call the police, and thank got she did. The next text I got from her was it's a scam."
By that time, the callers had directed Wagner to transfer $300,000 to his checking account and wire the funds.
A Largo police officer pulled up next to Wagner and tried to speak directly to the caller, causing the scammer to hang up.
Unknown caller
What we don't know:
Authorities have not identified the suspect operating the scheme or confirmed if other local residents lost money.
Protecting yourself from phone scams
What you can do:
To avoid falling victim, residents should always ask callers for a badge number and request to call back through the main department dispatch number.
Ask what payment methods the agency accepts, as requests involving Zelle, gift cards, wire transfers or cryptocurrency are major red flags.
The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office noted it will never call, text or email asking for money or banking information over the phone.
Anyone who receives a suspicious call should hang up immediately and contact local police using a verified number.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from Largo resident Ben Wagner, who detailed his experience with the scam, as well as official guidance from the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.