Paso Robles Police warn public about scam calls impersonating officers and demanding payment

PASO ROBLES, Calif. – The Paso Robles Police Department is warning the public about scammers impersonating law enforcement on phone calls and deceiving locals into sending payments.

Con artists are using technology to spoof, or make the call appear to come from, the police department and claiming that payment is required to avoid arrest for a variety of offenses, including missing jury duty explained the Paso Robles Police Department in a press release Monday.

That spoof technology makes caller's phones and caller ID systems show the call is coming from the Paso Robles Police Department shared the Paso Robles Police Department.

According to Paso Robles Police, scammers often demand payment in the form of gift cards and are even using actual officer badge numbers to sound more credible.

The Paso Robles Police Department stated that those types of calls are all fraudulent and the department will never call individuals threatening arrest nor demanding payments of any kind.

If you receive a suspicious call, contact the Paso Robles Police Department at 805-237-6464 as soon as possible to verify the legitimacy of the call.