Jury duty scam hitting San Benito County

A jury duty scam is hitting residents in San Benito County, according to the sheriff’s office.

Deputies said they received reports on two scams Monday from a person who claimed to be calling from the San Benito County Sheriff’s Office.

The false “deputy” tells the victim they missed jury duty, there’s a warrant for their arrest and demands money to pay the fine over the phone, according to the sheriff’s office. Victims are also told to buy a pre-paid credit card and call the fake deputy back with the pin numbers on the card.

The sheriff’s office said one person lost money by following the instructions and a second victim didn’t follow through with the suspect’s request.

Deputies want to remind the public that they never collect fines for courts and would never call someone to pay a fine over the phone.

Anyone with information on this scam is asked to call the San Benito County Sheriff’s Office.