Months later, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office continuing to receive reports of scam calls

LINCOLN COUNTY – Several months after initial reports of scam calls being made in the area, the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office last week said the attempted scams have continued.

Late last September, the Sheriff’s Office said numerous county residents had been targeted by a scam caller claiming to be with the Sheriff’s Office. At that time, the individuals reported they had received voicemails from a person claiming to be a “Sergeant Johnson” who said he wanted to speak with them about a case. The caller ID showed a phone number of 715-201-8853, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

The scam calls continued into Oct. 2024, with callers reporting that scammers had used the names “Sergeant Brian Collins” and “Sergeant Brian Hoffman.”

Last week, the Sheriff’s Office said it had recently received several reports of scam calls coming from individuals impersonating Sheriff’s Office employees.

The scammers were attempting to collect money from citizens, according to the Sheriff’s Office.

“This is not a new scam, but what’s different this time is they’re now spoofing our main Sheriff’s Office phone number, giving the illusion that the call is legitimate when, in fact, it is not,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post. “They will tell you that you owe money for jury duty, warrants or any number of other things that seem to be limited only by their imagination. We assure you, we are not making these calls. Protect yourself by being aware that this is happening, letting your friends and family know that it’s happening and by understanding that 99.99% of the time, any official business we might have when it comes to warrants and such will be conducted in person.”

The Sheriff’s Office said that if you receive a call from someone saying they are with the Sheriff’s Office and are suspicious it could be a scam, hang up and call the Sheriff’s Office back to be sure the call is legitimate.

“We promise our feelings won’t be hurt,” the Sheriff’s Office stated. “We’d rather you were taking steps to actively protect yourself than worrying about offending us.”

The Sheriff’s Office can be reached at 715-536-6272.