MACON, Ga. — Scamming is nothing new, but there's a new round of it going around Macon-Bibb County.
This time, scammers are calling people posing as law enforcement.
Captain George Meadows of the Bibb County Sheriff's Office said they've had a couple of people fall victim to it and lose money.
"The way that they're actually able to intimidate people is that they know the names of people in the household," Captain Meadows said.
He said that scammers use familiar names as bait to trick people into believing someone they love is in danger.
They use made-up stories about bond and bail money and then try to meet up with people to collect money.
"The sheriff's office never does business in that manner," he said.
Jason Blankenship, the Vice President of Development at Better Business Bureau, said he's seen numerous scam calls of this sort over the years.
"This takes it to a whole new level, because this is, you know, you're starting to put your personal safety at risk," Blankenship said.
Captain Meadows said one main reason people are falling for the scam is because the phone call has been "spoofed," meaning it shows the same number his office uses.
Another reason is that scam callers use the names of people who work in his department to establish credibility.
"So the best advice we can offer is hang up the phone, call the sheriff's office, and verify that there is no warrant," Captain Meadows said.
It's also important to not just call any number to verify a suspicious call. If the person on the other end gives you a specific number to call, don't use that one and instead look up the non-emergency number for your local office.
"A great tool that scammers use is fear," Blankenship said.
That's why it's important to stay calm, collect their badge number and name, and hang up the call to speak with the sheriff's office about what you heard.
"The more we know about it, the better we're able to protect you," Captain Meadows said.