Victim told they had arrest warrant for missing jury duty

MARION COUNTY, Fla. – The Marion County Sheriff’s Office putting out an alert Thursday after they say a person was recently threatened with jail time after a person called saying they would be arrested if they missed jury duty,

According to a post on social media, investigators said the scheme involved a person pretending to be a sergeant with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.

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The victim was told by the unknown caller that they had two federal search warrants issued for their arrest, the report said.

Deputies said the caller was advised to go to the sheriff’s office with a cashier’s check and pay a fee of $2,500 to rectify the situation. Fortunately, the sheriff’s office said the victim did not fall for the scheme and hung up.

The sheriff’s office is reminding the community that it will never ask for payment over the phone, and people will not be able to pay to get rid of a warrant.

The county said if you actually missed jury duty, you can contact the Marion County Clerk of the Court.

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About the Author:

Landon joined News 6 in 2017. He grew up in Southern Illinois and graduated from Southern Illinois University with a bachelors degree in TV and digital media. When he is not at work you can catch him at one of Orlando's theme parks or the beach. Before working at News 6 he worked for stations in Miami and Fort Myers.