Fraudulent Calls from County Clerk's Office

Combined Press Release

Wayne Bradford, Eastland County Sheriff, Cathy Jentho, Eastland County Clerk and Russ Thomason, Eastland County Criminal District Attorney

September 18, 2014

Citizen and Consumer Alert:

Numerous phone scams and fraudulent loan scams are being used in this area and surrounding counties at this time.

Fraudulent Calls

1. Calls from someone identifying themselves as working for the Eastland County Clerk’s Office and saying that you owe the Clerk’s Office monies and that they need a credit card number to make payment immediately.

2. Calls from the Clerk’s Office stating that you owe a fine for not showing up for jury duty.

3. Midway Mediation is one of the companies making these fraudulent calls.

Facts

1. The Clerk’s Office will never call you to ask for payment of fines or fees. If you owe a fine or fee, you will be contacted by the Sheriff’s Office and they will have a court order in hand. No Eastland County Office will call you and demand immediate payment by giving your credit card number.

2. Midway Mediation or Midway Resolution has never been employed by the Eastland County Clerk or Eastland County to collect money.

What to do if you receive one of these calls?

1. Get the name of the person calling, who they work for and write down the time and date.

2. Record the call if you have the capability.

3. Contact the County Clerk, Sheriff or Police Department to report the call.

Fraudulent Loans

1. Several citizens have had loans made in their name at online loan companies.

2. Companies where online fraudulent loans have been made are: Check n Go, Speedy Cash and United Cash Advance. There may be others. The local Check n Go advised that they are not associated with the online company except in name only.

 What do I do if I find out someone has made a loan in my name?

Get as much information from the company calling you and demanding payment for the loan in your name. For instance: Date and time of the loan, where the money was sent to along with the bank name and account number. Call your local Police or Sheriff’s Office and make a report. Ask for a copy of the report. This may take a day or two. Contact one of the credit bureaus and check your record. Keep an eye on your credit or invest in a service that does that for you.

The Police Department and Sheriff’s Office are investigating several of these fraudulent loans but some are originated from public Wi-Fi spots and some of the out of state banks are not being very cooperative. This has led to dead ends in some of the cases.

Please remember to never give anyone your Social Security Number, date of birth, credit card number or other identifying information over the phone to someone who calls you.