U.S. Marshals warn public of ‘jury duty scam’ phone calls

JACKSON, Tenn. — If you get a phone call saying you missed jury duty and owe a fine, U.S. Marshals say you shouldn’t give the caller any personal information.

There is an ongoing jury duty telephone scam in which a caller poses as a U.S. Marshal or other law enforcement officer and claims the person has missed federal jury duty but can avoid arrest by immediately paying a fine, according to a release from the U.S. Marshal’s Service in Memphis.

The scammer can spoof their phone numbers to appear on caller ID as being from the court or a government agency, according to the release.

The caller may provide details such as titles and badge numbers of legitimate officers or names of federal judges and courtroom addresses.

Federal courts do not call prospective jurors and ask for money or personal identifying information over the telephone, the release states.

Anyone receiving such a call should report it along with any available caller ID information to the Marshals Service at 901-544-3304.

If you believe you have been victim of a jury duty scam, identity theft or other scheme, you can also file a complaint online with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov.