Chattooga County residents are being reminded to be cautious of telephone scams in which callers pose as law enforcement officers, court employees or federal agents and threaten victims with arrest unless money is paid immediately.

The warning comes as authorities continue to report cases involving scammers who use fear and urgency to convince victims that they have missed jury duty, have an outstanding warrant or are under investigation.

In one recent Georgia case, an elderly woman reportedly lost nearly $70,000 after scammers convinced her that she was dealing with legitimate government and law enforcement officials.

Police in Perry said the scammers allegedly posed as federal, court and law enforcement officials and threatened the woman with arrest. The suspects reportedly instructed her to withdraw money and make payments through cryptocurrency and other methods.

One of the tactics used in the scheme was telling the victim not to discuss what was happening with anyone else.

Authorities say that is a major warning sign. Scammers frequently attempt to isolate victims from family members, bank employees or others who might recognize the fraud and stop a payment.

The scam can be especially convincing because criminals may know a victim’s name, address or other personal information. They can also use caller ID spoofing, making a telephone call appear to originate from a sheriff’s office, police department, courthouse or other legitimate government agency.

Some scammers also use the real names of judges, deputies, police officers or court employees in an effort to make their demands sound legitimate.

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, which serves Chattooga County, warns that residents continue to receive fraudulent calls and emails claiming they failed to report for jury duty.

The court says legitimate jury summonses are sent through the U.S. Mail.

Courts and legitimate law enforcement agencies will not call someone and demand immediate payment to avoid arrest for missing jury duty. Residents should be particularly suspicious when callers request payment using gift cards, cryptocurrency, money transfers or payment kiosks.

Another warning sign is a caller who insists that the person remain on the telephone while traveling to a bank, ATM or store to obtain money.

Anyone receiving such a call should hang up without providing personal or financial information.

Residents who are concerned that a call might be legitimate should independently look up the telephone number for the agency supposedly calling and contact that agency directly. Do not rely on a telephone number provided by the caller.

Residents should also talk with older family members about these scams. Criminals frequently target senior citizens and may attempt to keep victims frightened and isolated long enough to obtain money before relatives become aware of what is happening.

The most important thing to remember is simple: a legitimate court or law enforcement agency will not demand immediate payment over the telephone to prevent your arrest.