{"id":16106,"date":"2024-04-11T10:49:26","date_gmt":"2024-04-11T14:49:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/collierclerk.com\/?p=16106"},"modified":"2026-01-20T12:59:34","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T17:59:34","slug":"nine-new-reports-of-phone-scams-in-collier-county","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/app.collierclerk.com\/collierclerkcom\/nine-new-reports-of-phone-scams-in-collier-county\/","title":{"rendered":"Nine new reports of phone scams in Collier County"},"content":{"rendered":"

Since April 4, 2024, the Collier County Clerk of the Courts Office of Inspector General has received nine reports from Collier County residents and former residents. <\/em><\/p>\n

Clerk Crystal K. Kinzel is warning Collier County residents to be vigilant to avoid falling victim to a new round of phone scams. Since April 4, 2024, the Clerk\u2019s Office of Inspector General (OIG) has received nine different calls from Collier County residents and former residents, reporting attempted phone scams. The complainants were told they did not report for jury duty, had a warrant for their arrest, were in contempt of court, or failed to pay a traffic citation.<\/p>\n

The scammers demanded between $500 and $10,000 from the victims, who were told they could pay in cash or through an electronic pay application like Zelle. In almost every report, the fraudster had an apparently authentic phone number show up on the victim\u2019s caller ID.\u00a0 The phone number may be a \u201cspoofed\u201d number, which means the number is not coming from the number being displayed and the call is really coming from a completely different number that is not visible to the victim. Other victims reported the calls coming through with blocked numbers.<\/p>\n

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When some victims caught on to the scam and tried to hang up, the fraudster convinced them to be transferred to an alleged supervisor to confirm the violations. In other instances, the fraudster used real Collier County Sheriff\u2019s Office employee names and badge numbers, or an actual Collier County judge’s name, to convince the victim the violations were real.<\/p>\n

Two victims reported that the scammers convinced them to pay the money demanded: one paid $1,800 and another paid $3,500. One victim was convinced to attempt a $10,000 cash withdrawal, which was intercepted quickly by a financial institution employee when they recognized the scam.<\/p>\n

Residents are advised to be wary of caller IDs and to never give personal or financial information over the phone to a stranger. Please remember that Florida Clerk’s Offices will never call to demand payments. If you encounter any suspicious calls, please report them immediately.<\/p>\n

Here are some tips to follow to avoid being a victim of phone scams:<\/p>\n