MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MA – The Middlesex Sheriff’s Office (MSO) is warning residents of a significant uptick in reported scam calls in which perpetrators are posing as members of the office.
During June, the MSO’s Inner Perimeter Security (IPS) team reported receiving 59 complaints of scammers posing as officers or deputies, the most recently reported to the office in a single month.
Of the 59 people who reported receiving calls during the month of June, one individual reported losing more than $1,700.
These law enforcement impersonation scams are persistent and widespread, with fraudsters often telling targets they are subject to arrest for things like failing to pay taxes or outstanding fines; failing to show for jury duty; or failing to participate in court hearings as expert witnesses. In some instances, they may tell individuals with professional licenses – such as medical or mental health professionals – that those licenses may be revoked as a result of these failures.
In almost all cases, the scammers will tell targets that they can avoid arrest if they pay fines and fees and will pressure them to pay immediately utilizing cryptocurrency, gift cards or via wire transfer.
Scammers will frequently lend additional authenticity to this fraud by utilizing the names of real officers, spoofing the telephone numbers of law enforcement agencies, or even telling victims to report to addresses associated with law enforcement entities.
“If you receive one of these messages, please know that no legitimate law enforcement agency will ever threaten arrest over the phone, via text or email, or demand you pay a fine using one of these means,” said Middlesex Sheriff Peter J. Koutoujian. “These are tell-tale signs of a scam. If you receive one of these calls or messages, disconnect right away, don’t click on any links and never provide any personal or financial information.”
In addition to notifying law enforcement, individuals can also report these – and other – scams to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/.
According to the FTC, the agency received over 5,900 reports of government imposter scams from Massachusetts residents alone in 2024 resulting in more than $9.5 million in losses. In the first quarter of 2025, the FTC has already received 1,530 such reports, with residents losing nearly $2.5 million.