Jury Duty Scam Awareness

Rankin County, MS- Madison and Rankin Counties' District Attorney, Bubba Bramlett, is issuing a cautionary advisory to the local community regarding a recent telephone scam. These fraudulent callers falsely represent themselves as officials from local law enforcement agencies, the sheriff's department, the district attorney's office, or county courts. They misinform victims, asserting that they have missed a jury duty summons, potentially leading to contempt of court charges. In some cases, they may even claim that a warrant has been issued for the victim's arrest.

Subsequently, the caller directs the victim to send money to evade arrest, either by providing their bank account details or using payment platforms such as cash app, PayPal, Venmo, or wire transfers. In more concerning instances, scammers may coax victims into divulging highly sensitive personal information, including their date of birth, Social Security number, or credit/debit card numbers.

"Please be aware that even though these calls appear to be from a local police or sheriff departments phone number, a law officer or judge will never demand payment from a public member, nor would an officer come to collect money from you," stated Bramlett. "These scammers are using real names, and it appears they have all your correct information, but please don't fall victim."

Courts primarily communicate with individuals regarding jury duty or any lapses in jury duty service through traditional postal mail. They do not employ phone calls or email for this purpose. Furthermore, authentic court-related phone communications strictly adhere to regular business hours. Therefore, it is imperative to exercise caution and avoid becoming a target of telephone scams or any other fraudulent activities where unfamiliar individuals solicit personal or banking information from you. 

If you feel you have fallen victim to this missed jury duty scam or any other telephone scam, please report the incident to (601) 825-1472.

###