GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Alachua County Sheriff's Office is alerting families countywide, to be wary of callers, claiming to be from the county court.
The law enforcement alert came from the sheriff's office's Twitter account Monday afternoon.
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The message warns that "fraudulent calls are being made to family members of inmates incarcerated in the Alachua County Jail."
The sheriff's office said the scammer identifies himself as "Captain Steve Phillips of the Court," and usually calls within 48 hours of an arestee being booked into the jail.
The caller tells the inmate's family member to pick up a CVS cash card, then read that card number to the caller over the phone.
Tom Stephens with the Better Business Bureau said that one red flag is that any time anyone asks you to put money on a card for them-- it is definitely a scam.
"That's the point in time you just need to hang up. Then if you have any doubts, hang the phone up, call the agency that they were supposed to be from and verify that it was just a complete scam," he said.
The Alachua County Sheriff's Office is alerting the public, saying these are fake calls and the "courts are working to identify the suspect..."
Investigators suggest you immediately hang up if you receive one of these fraudulent calls, and report it to police.