U.S. Marshals, FBI Urge Public: Report Phone Scams - Colorado

Denver, CO – The U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) are alerting the public of several nationwide imposter scams involving individuals claiming to be U.S. marshals, court officers, or other law enforcement officials. They are urging people to report the calls to their local law enforcement agency, to their local FBI office, and to file a consumer complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which has the ability to detect patterns of fraud from the information collected and share that data with law enforcement.

During these calls, scammers attempt to collect a fine in lieu of arrest due to a claim of identity theft, failing to report for jury duty, or other offenses. They then tell victims they can avoid arrest by withdrawing cash and transferring it to the government, purchasing a prepaid debit card such as a Green Dot card or gift card and read the card number over the phone to satisfy the fine, or by depositing cash into bitcoin ATMs.

Scammers use many tactics to sound and appear credible. They sometimes provide information like badge numbers, names of actual law enforcement officials and federal judges, and courthouse addresses. They may also spoof their phone numbers to appear on caller IDs as if they are calling from a government agency or the court.

Multiple scam attempts have been recently reported across the state of Colorado. The scam callers are utilizing the names of either U.S. Marshal Kirk Taylor or other Deputy U.S. Marshals who are employed locally by the USMS, telling victims they have a warrant for their arrest and then demanding money as the only way to prevent being arrested. They are utilizing software that makes it appear they are calling from the phone number of a U.S. Marshals office, and may even provide a legitimate callback number in the hopes victims will search the number and see it is real. 

There have been many victims with losses in the tens of thousands of dollars. The U.S. Marshals Service receives inquiries daily from victims and potential victims of this scam.

If you believe you have been targeted in a scam similar to this, here’s what you can do:

• Contact your local law enforcement agency to file a report.
• Report the incident at 1-800-CALL-FBI or tips.fbi.gov.
• File a complaint with the FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov, if applicable.

Things to remember:

• The U.S. Marshals Service WILL NEVER ask for credit/debit card/gift card numbers, wire transfers, or bank routing numbers, or to make bitcoin deposits for any purpose.
• NEVER divulge personal or financial information to unknown callers.
• Report scam phone calls to your local FBI offices and to the FTC.
• You can remain anonymous when you report.
• Authenticate the call by hanging up and then calling the clerk of the court's office of the U.S. District Court in your area and verify the court order given by the caller.

You can follow the latest news and updates about the U.S. Marshals Service in Colorado on X (formerly Twitter) @USMSDenver.