JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville nonprofit leader says scammers used JEA’s phone number to try to pressure her into paying a bill she says she didn’t owe.
Tammy McGuire, owner of Foster Closet, said she received a call that looked legitimate — even the caller ID showed JEA’s real number. The caller told her the nonprofit owed money for a building. However, McGuire vacated the building more than a year ago.
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“I said there is no way because we already stopped everything in October of 2024,” McGuire said. “They said, ‘Nope, you still owe it,’ and I go, goodness, there’s a new person there, and it’s in their name, and they kept going on and on, trying to push for money.”
McGuire said the caller refused to provide a specific amount, but insisted the organization still owed a balance. She said the caller then directed her to call an 888 number, which she later learned was fraudulent.
“It was a dub, so then you will see here at 11:47 I called the real JEA, and they said there are a lot of people being hoaxed into paying something to this other entity and faking them out as JEA,” McGuire said. “I was kind of scared, and that was when I called you. I was worried, very worried.”
McGuire told News4JAX reporter Briana Brownlee and photojournalist Jesse Hanson that the call stood out because of how real it appeared — particularly because the caller ID matched JEA’s number. She said that detail prompted her to document the call and double-check the claim.
“I was thinking, well, maybe they did call me right. But when they told me that, I started screenshotting. I was thinking there’s got to be more to the story,” McGuire said. “There’s got to be more people affected.”
The experience left McGuire worried about others who might not recognize the warning signs, particularly older residents and people facing financial strain.
“Emotions were very high that day because that’s a lot of money for the Foster Closet to have to fork out again,” she said. “I can just feel older people, maybe, or people who may be monetarily compromised in this economy.”
JEA spokeswoman Karen McCallister said the city-owned utility has seen a slight uptick in scam reports this month. She said scammers often change tactics, but frequently threaten customers with disconnection or claim they have a credit on their account.
“What we have seen this month is that a caller would threaten our customer with disconnection if they don’t make immediate payment,” McCallister said. “Or sometimes they will tell them they have a credit on their account, or they give them a certain number to call to access that credit.”
McCallister said JEA works with a national organization to shut down scam numbers, but the calls can be difficult to stop because they often appear to originate from JEA’s real number.
“The challenge is that the calls often look like they are coming from JEA,” McCallister said. “So it is tough to shut all of the numbers down, but we do work with a national organization to get these bad actors and their operations shut down.”
She added that JEA will never call customers and demand immediate payment over the phone.
McCallister urged anyone who receives a suspicious call to hang up and call the number listed on their bill. If they believe they have already fallen victim, she said, they should report it to JEA and their bank.
McGuire said she is relieved she didn’t pay, but hopes her story will help others recognize the scam before it’s too late.