PHOENIX — Imagine being told you missed jury duty and you are being fined for not showing up.
Scammers are reportedly going after Valley residents using that rouse and swindling people out of thousands of dollars.
The Superior Court in Maricopa County says it has recently uncovered fraud activity where scammers are calling people and threatening them with arrest for not appearing for jury service and telling them to pay fines and fees to avoid being taken to jail.
The Jury Office says some people have lost as much as $6,000 in the scam.
They warn that scammers want people to pay the fake fines with a prepaid debit or gift card, and they will have the person read them the scratched-off number on the back of the card to have access to the money.
Jury administrator Matthew Martin says some of the scam victims started mailing their prepaid cards to their office, which led the office to look into the scam.
Court officials recommend that if you are targeted by a jury scam, write down the phone number of the caller and then call police. They also warn people to not give the caller any personal information or agree to provide any payment. You can also verify your jury service status by calling 602-506-5879.
The court has notified the Arizona Attorney General's Office of these latest incidents.
