An Anne Arundel County woman says a fake jury duty call fell apart when the caller could not pronounce the places she has known for decades.
Nadine O’Drain, of Severn, picked up because the call came from an Annapolis number.
She thought it could be connected to her doctor’s office, but the man on the line claimed he was calling about a court order.
The caller told her she had failed to appear for jury duty and was facing contempt of court.
The Caller Claimed She Owed Two $4,500 Fines
WMAR reported that O’Drain was told she had a court order for failure to appear and contempt of court. For a moment, the claim made her question whether something had been missed. Her grandchildren check the mail, and she wondered if a summons could have arrived without her seeing it.
The caller allegedly told O’Drain that the failure-to-appear issue carried a $4,500 fine. He then claimed the contempt of court charge carried another $4,500 fine. That turned the fake court warning into a $9,000 demand.
The caller also presented himself as someone with sheriff’s-office authority, which O’Drain said made her nervous even as she continued pressing him for details.
The Local Names Exposed the Scam
The caller first claimed to be tied to federal court and mispronounced Severn as “serve-in.” O’Drain immediately knew that was wrong and challenged him, telling him there was no federal court there. He then shifted to Annapolis, but that explanation also created a problem.
O’Drain said he told her she could pay the fine on Church Street, while she knew the local landmark is Church Circle.
The Callback Number Sounded Convincing
O’Drain said the call came from an Annapolis number, and when she called back, the line played a recording that identified it as the Anne Arundel County Sheriff’s Office. The caller also had her full name, phone number, and address, giving him enough personal information to make the threat feel more real.
Questions Kept the Caller From Taking Control
O’Drain said the caller had an answer for each concern she raised, including her point that courts would have been closed around the July 4 holiday. She felt he was trying to keep her on the phone long enough to wear her down.
The call ended only after she directly said she believed it was a scam.
Officials Say Courts Do Not Demand Jury Duty Payments by Phone
The Anne Arundel County Sheriff’s Office says it receives several calls a day about similar scams. The office says sheriff’s personnel do not collect money to satisfy court documents, and residents should not share personal information or arrange payment with callers.
Courts contact citizens about jury service by mail. If there is a jury-service issue, the person would receive a mailed notice requiring them to appear in court.
Jury Duty Scams Rely on Fear and Fake Authority
Anyone who receives a jury-duty threat should hang up and contact the court or sheriff’s office directly using a phone number found on the official website, not a number provided by the caller or shown on caller ID.
Local details can also be useful. A caller who mispronounces town names, invents street names, confuses court locations, or cannot explain normal jury-service procedures may be relying on a script rather than real local knowledge.
Suspected jury duty scams should be reported to the real court or sheriff’s office being impersonated, local law enforcement, and the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Online fraud can also be reported to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at IC3.gov.