Scammers request funds be transferred to bitcoin; check with court first
By Randy Arrington
LURAY, April 17 — Local residents have been receiving phone calls recently telling them they have missed jury duty, and that if they don’t pay a fine…they will end up in jail. While the threat seems real to some, local officials say the court will never make such requests, let alone threats.
“People need to know that they need to show up for jury duty, but we don’t threaten money or jail time,” said Grayson Markowitz, clerk of the Page County Circuit Court.
Scammers are pouncing on the opportunity for confusion given the higher number of jury trials being conducted in recent years and the higher number of jurors needed to conduct those trials.
“We have 150 people on the jury panel and they know the exact dates that they are supposed to report because they have either been contacted by me personally or through a ‘robo call’ or text to remind them of that date,” Markowitz said. “And that’s the only thing they will get from us…just information and dates, not threats.”
The circuit court clerks says that the scammers are asking their victims to convert payments of fees into bitcoin. The call begins with the victim being told that they have missed jury duty and must send money, or they will be arrested. At least one victim paid the scammers money and is now talking with the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office. However, there is little way to trace these scammers.
“If they have anyone calling asking for money…pertaining to jury service…please call the clerk’s office, and we will assure them they don’t have to pay anyone,” Markowitz said. “All of our jurors are paid … we give them money.”
If anyone receives such a call, they should contact the courts for verification and then report the incident to the Page County Sheriff’s Office or local police departments.
“I hope it was just a short-term thing, but I am worried because of the number of jury trials we are doing,” the clerk said. “I don’t want to see people financially hurt by these scammers. It’s sad they take advantage of people trying to do the right thing.”
Those who have questions or want to report a scam, may call the Page County Circuit Court at 540-743-4064, or visit their office at the Page County Courthouse on South Court Street in Luray; or call the Page County Sheriff’s Office at 540-743-6571.
•••
RELATED ARTICLES
Clerk, Commonwealth Attorney say court order backlogs created by huge hike in cases
Be the first to comment