The King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) is warning residents about an increase in sophisticated phone scams that have cost local victims thousands of dollars.
These calls have become increasingly convincing as scammers even use technology to change the caller ID or spoof their phone numbers to appear as though they are calling from the KCSO.
Jenny Gerstorff, who received one of the fraudulent calls, said she usually screens her calls, but when she heard “Sergeant Brian Paul with the King County Sheriff’s Office,” she picked up.
“I was worried that was, you know, something might have happened to one of my kids or something’s wrong, so I answered the call, and it was very intense, very quickly,” Gerstorff said. “He kind of talked fast, and it sounded like I had missed multiple instances of jury duty. The judge had been fed up with it. He issued a warrant for my arrest,” Gerstorff said.
Sergeant Houck said scammers are becoming more adept at sounding like law enforcement. Houck explained that the callers use specific legal terminology to gain trust.
“They’re smart. They know legal terms. So, they know, you know, like what to say and how to sound official. They know how to use technology to mimic legitimate phone numbers,” Houck said.
Scammers are also providing real physical locations to build credibility with their victims. During her call, Gerstorff was given a specific address, she said.
“I looked it up. It was the King County Courthouse,” Gerstorff said.
In SeaTac, one man sent $1,000 to a scammer before realizing the fraud.
In a separate case, a woman was on her way to hand over $5,000 when she stopped to speak to real officers. Those officers recognized the scam immediately and prevented the loss.
Sergeant Jason Houck of the KCSO said the scams often target the elderly and people who are not native English speakers.
Sgt. Houck says the sheriff’s office will never call and ask you for money. He recommends asking the caller for their full name and badge number, then calling the non-emergency line to double-check the caller is legitimate, or to report the scam.
Authorities say it is difficult to track the perpetrators because of the technology and methods they use. Scammers often use burner phones and transfer funds to international accounts.
“As soon as the money goes in there, they transfer it out of there to some other, typically foreign bank account,” Houck said. He also said it’s likely the scammers are outside the United States.
A separate scam involving text messages has hundreds calling the King County Superior Court. The texts show a formal-looking document stating you have unpaid tolls. But upon closer inspection, it is littered with errors.
Local authorities stress that if you receive a questionable call or text, it is best to hang up the call and call the non-emergency line to double-check if it is real.
©2026 Cox Media Group
