Vancouver police warn of jury duty scam

Vancouver police are warning the public after a recent report of a jury duty scam.

The victim told police that the scam involves being contacted by telephone from someone claiming to be with a local law enforcement agency, according to Vancouver police.

The caller tells the victim that a warrant is out for his or her arrest for failing to appear for jury duty; to clear the warrant, they are told, they need to pay fines.

The suspect then tells the victim to purchase cash cards in varying amounts over the course of several days and instructs the victim to provide the code numbers on the back of the card once they’ve been purchased, police said.

Vancouver police is reminding residents to never provide financial or personal information over the phone from any unsolicited caller.

If you receive an unsolicited call from someone claiming to be from an organization, hang up and reach out to the organization directly, police said.

Vancouver police is asking anyone who believes they fell prey to this scam to make a police report.

The FBI website keeps a list of many of the common and emerging frauds, which can be found at http://www.fbi.gov/scams-safety/frauds-from-a-to-z.