North Shore Residents Warned Of 'Sheriff' Scam, With Official-Looking Court Documents

SALEM, MA — North Shore residents are being warned of an enhanced version of a common scam that involves a "spoof" phone number appearing to be from law enforcement and official-looking court documents.

Salem police said they recently took a report from a resident who advised they had received a telephone call from a "sheriff" notifying them that there was a warrant for their arrest.

The caller told the target that if they paid a fine of $6,000, the warrant would be cleared and they would not be arrested.

Follow-up telephone calls and emails resulted in the "sheriff" producing a doctored arrest warrant issued by the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts for the intended victim, and official-looking documents reportedly from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Salem police provided the attached picture used to make the scam seem legitimate.

"This is a scam," Salem police said. "Law enforcement is not a collection point for fines and will not solicit money over the phone or threaten you with arrest if you do not pay to resolve a matter.

"If anyone demands money and claims to be a law enforcement officer, you can be assured that it is a scam."

Police said the scams have become more elaborate in recent years, including "spoofing" phone numbers to make them appear to be coming from local law enforcement, and researching personal details of the target aimed at making the demand for payment seem more legitimate.

"If you receive anything like this, please contact your local law enforcement agency and end all communication with the person calling, texting or emailing you," Salem police said.