Telephone scams are beginning to circulate through the St. Cloud area.

Benton County Sheriff Troy Heck says that criminals are pretending to be members of the sheriff’s office when they make phone calls.

They are calling citizens, demanding payment, and threatening to make arrests if they aren’t paid.

The sheriff’s office reminds the public their office does not, and will not, call and demand payment. Citizens are urged to hang up and stop contact with someone pretending to be with the Sheriff’s Office, if they are contacted in this way.

If someone has any doubt that a caller is truly a deputy or sheriff, they should immediately hang up and call the Sheriff’s Office at 320-968-7201, where a dispatcher will be able to confirm whether the caller was legitimate or not. 

Anyone who has received this scam call and given money should call the sheriff’s office or their local law enforcement agency to report this crime.