08/11/2026
Scammers are getting smarter and more creative everyday. As technology improves, so do the scams.
Here’s today’s takeaway: Law enforcement does not call you before executing an arrest warrant.
You should be suspicious whenever someone calls, emails, texts, or contacts you asking for payment. Scammers try to create a sense of urgency. If you’re uncertain, do your own research through well-known channels using official phone numbers and email addresses.
It began at 10:43 a.m. on a Tuesday last month, with a call from an unknown number. Kimberly Fudge had just gotten a refurbished Samsung in the mail and was still setting it up; when it rang, she assumed it might be a contact the phone didn’t recognize yet.
The caller said he was from a nearby city in Pasco County, Florida. He verified her identity, then asked her to hold for a sheriff’s deputy.
The “deputy” said Fudge, 38, had missed jury duty in a federal case despite signing a document promising to appear. An angry judge had issued a warrant for her arrest.
The caller knew Fudge’s parents had retired from the nearby Hillsborough County sheriff’s department, and he offered her a deal: pay bail, then come to the station to confirm her signature didn’t match the document’s, and get a refund on the spot.
One catch: A gag order in the case meant if she told anyone, both she and whomever she informed could face charges.
“Everything looked legit,” Fudge recalled. They sounded official, too. She could even hear apparent police radio traffic in the background of the call.
A team of at least five scammers, playing different roles with dead-perfect Florida accents, would keep her on the phone for nearly 10 hours and talk her into handing over $25,000.
