Detectives with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office wants to send a strong warning to grandparents in our area. There is a new scam where a person calls a grandparent pretending to be a grandchild. The “grandchild” tells their grandparent that they have been in an accident and/or they are in jail and need bond money. They will then tell the grandparent that an attorney will call them to pick up the money. The grandparent meets with the supposed “attorney” and gives them the requested cash. Later the grandparent finds out that their grandchild is fine and has not been in jail or in an accident.
One of the cash exchanges was caught on video on September 9, 2020 at the Flying J in McCalla. The suspect met the victim and took $14,000 in cash and left the scene. The vehicle in this instance was possibly a black SUV with dark tinted windows. The suspect appeared to be of Middle Eastern or Indian descent but had no discernable accent.
In another successful scam, the victim turned over $16,000 to the suspect. There may be other victims who have not called to file a report. Please reach out to us so that we can bring these people to justice. This is a despicable attack on the love grandparents have for their grandchildren and we will not tolerate this.
If you receive a call of this nature, please call the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office directly at 205-325-1450 and verify the information you are given. If you actually need to bail someone out of jail, you will need to come to the jail and sign paperwork having the person released.