Man says scammers targeted him and his daughter, who has different number

TEGA CAY, S.C. — A Tega Cay man says scammers targeted him and his daughter, who has a different phone number than he does.

The first caller left a voicemail. She didn’t say who she was with, just a “dispatch” division, whatever that means. But it sounded professional enough, until the little threat at the end.

“You have been notified, sir,” she said in the message.

“She then proceeded to call my daughter at her work … gave her a case number, the whole nine yards,” Steve Glass told Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke.

Glass also knew something was up right away because his first name is actually “Stephens,” with an “S” at the end, but he says the caller just said “Stephen.”

Then about two weeks later, he got another call, this time from someone claiming to be with the York County Sheriff’s Office. Both messages mentioned legal documents that apparently required his immediate attention.

He said the second caller even spoofed the right number for the sheriff’s office.

“Of course, I watch you on TV and see these kind of things happening all the time,” he told Stoogenke. “When I saw the number being spoofed as York County Sheriff’s Office, that’s why I figured I better say something to somebody.”

Back in January, Stoogenke reported on this exact issue: Scammers impersonating York County deputies. A month later, Channel 9 South Carolina Reporter Tina Terry reported the problem was getting worse.

A few months after that, the sheriff’s office alerted people to a new twist on the con. It said scammers were targeting inmates’ families specifically, trying to trick them into “sending them money.”

Glass may never know how the callers got his contact information or his daughter’s. But he says they didn’t fall for it and he wants to warn others.

If you get a call about a legal issue that seems iffy:

• Remember, most civil and criminal steps are done in writing, not by phone. So that’s a red flag.
• Don’t trust the number on your Caller ID.
• Hang up and call the real number. That’s what Steve Glass did. He says he called the sheriff’s office directly and confirmed it was a scam.

(WATCH BELOW: Thieves impersonate sheriff’s office in new scam sweeping NC)

Thieves impersonate sheriff’s office in new scam sweeping NC

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