No, that's not really Lt. Brad Johnson. Sheriff's office warns of latest phone scam

The scammers who claim they are with the Washington County Sheriff's Office are back.

This time they are claiming they are a Lt. Brad Johnson and telling folks they must pay $1,000 because they missed jury duty, according to a Facebook post by the real sheriff's office.

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Sgt. Carly Hose says the sheriff's office would never call anyone and tell them they have to pay money because they missed jury duty or because there's a warrant for them. Warrants and jury duty go through the court system.

And there is no Brad Johnson at the sheriff's office, said Hose, spokesperson for the office.

The sheriff's office deals with these scams periodically, whether it's a caller making up an officer's name or using the name of a real officer they found on the sheriff's office website, Hose said.

The bottom line is to be wary of any unsolicited calls from someone claiming to be with law enforcement, saying they are collecting money, Hose said.

"That's going to be a huge red flag," she said.

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Sometimes scammers spoof the sheriff's office phone number so the caller ID shows the sheriff's number, Hose said. If people doubt the validity of a caller asking for money, hang up and call the legitimate number for that law enforcement agency or business to check, she said.

For the sheriff's office, that is 240-313-2170.

That's also the number to call if people have become the victim of a scam claiming to involve the sheriff's office, Hose said.

As of Wednesday morning, Hose said she was unaware of anyone being victimized by the current scam involving the faux lieutenant. The sheriff's office had been contacted by residents receiving these scam calls.

"This is so frustrating. What's really irritating about this is the scammers are preying upon that shock value with people," making them concerned they have a warrant and could go to jail, she said.

These scams affect people of all demographics, Hose said.

Scammer warning signs to watch out for, according to Hose, include:

• Unsolicited callers asking for money.

• Law enforcement does not call, email or text people asking for money if they missed jury duty or have a warrant

• Callers asking for payment via gift cards

• Spoofed numbers. When in doubt, hang up and call the legitimate number.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Latest scam claims callers must pay because they missed jury duty