Chatham County Alerts Public of Pretrial Release Phone Scam
Chatham County alerts the public of a phone scam targeting families of individuals who are being released from detention before their trial date.
The phone calls come from someone falsely claiming to be affiliated with the Chatham County Pretrial Release Program. These callers are requesting payment in exchange for the release of a loved one from detention.
These calls are not legitimate. Chatham County Pretrial Release does not collect money for release and does not contact family members requesting payment under any circumstances.
The Chatham County Sheriff’s Office is investigating.
What the public needs to know to protect themselves:
- If a call seems suspicious, do not provide personal information, and hang up.
- Individuals who receive one of these fraudulent calls –
- should not agree to meet with the person and should not provide payment.
- should report it immediately to the Chatham County Sheriff’s Office at 919-542-2911.
- Individuals who need to confirm whether a communication is legitimate may contact Chatham County Diversion & Advocacy Programs at 919‑642‑1213 or the Pretrial Release check-in line at 919-642-1205.
More information can be found on the Chatham County Diversion & Advocacy webpage – https://www.chathamcountync.gov/diversion-advocacy.
