ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. –The United States District Court for the District of New Mexico has recently been notified of individuals both in New Mexico and outside of New Mexico being targeted with a variety of phone, mail, and email scams. The targets may be contacted by phone or email by an individual claiming to be a member of court staff, a local law enforcement agent, or an investigator. Alternatively, the individual may receive a copy of a fraudulent Arrest Warrant or Order of Arrest, including a fraudulent United States Postal Service receipt confirming delivery of various documents by registered mail. The targets are typically informed that they failed to appear for a court hearing or jury duty. The name given by the scammer or appearing on the fraudulent paperwork may be an actual judge, employee, or member of the law enforcement/legal community, which helps the scammer legitimize their threats. The scammer may eventually ask for personal identifiers or may provide the target personal identifying information (such as the target’s date of birth or address) in an effort to further establish legitimacy.  The scammer will eventually request payment of fines or the posting of a bond and will indicate that an immediate payment will ensure the matter is promptly dismissed. The request for payment is not always made during the initial contact and payment methods requested include credit card, bitcoin, and pre-paid gift card.

The U.S. District Court will never ask for sensitive information in an unsolicited phone call or email and will not assess a fine or penalty for failure to appear in federal court without first having the person appear before a judge.

It is a crime for anyone to falsely represent himself of herself as a federal court official and such an offense is taken very seriously by the federal judiciary. Persons receiving such a telephone call should not provide any requested information or pay any fines and should contact the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) at (505) 889-1300, select option #1 when prompted, to report the incident. In the District of New Mexico, the individual may also contact the United States District Court at 505-348-2000 to verify that there are no matters pending before the federal court in their name. Many of these scams intertwine federal and state courts, and individuals may also benefit from contacting their state court to ensure no matters are pending before that court. State court information can be found at nmcourts.gov.

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