Preschool teacher Abigail Ingram takes her responsibilities seriously, both as an educator and a law abiding citizen. So when someone called the school office saying she had missed jury duty and could be arrested; she was mortified.
" I don't really know how these things work because I have never been in that situation," Ingram said. "I just immediately kind of went into a panic."
Once they got her on the line, the male caller said she could avoid arrest if she followed specific instructions.
"I can't be arrested at my place of work,' she said. "I work in childcare."
Ingram called a second number the first caller gave her. The woman said she was a lieutenant with the sheriff's office. The woman told Ingram to stay on the line and drive to a specific address.
They asked for her car's mileage and said they were timing her. All red flags that Ingram ignored, but that her co-worker. Amy Benson, did not.
"I knew that was false," said Benson. "Because I had just recently dealt with jury duty myself."
Benson texted Ingram repeatedly, convincing her to turn around.
"I was just worried concerned," she said. " I didn't know what would have happened to my teacher."
Later they called police who confirmed it is a scam. People who fall for it are robbed or carjacked.
13 Action News drove to that address and discovered it's an office building.
Part of the reason some people think these calls are legist is because the scammers use what is called spoofing. They make it appear as though the call is coming from a legitimate number. In this case, it was the Washoe County Sheriff's Office.
