Fake police caller uses your real DV case details to demand payment or charges will be dropped
Scammers mine public court records to find domestic violence victims, then call posing as police or court officials demanding payment for bond, protective orders, or to keep an abuser in custody — claiming charges will be dropped without immediate payment.
Also known as: domestic violence victim court scam, fake detective DV case payment demand, court record exploitation DV scam, fake DA office call to domestic violence survivor
Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes
- 1 Call your bank or card's fraud line right now. Use the number on the back of your card — not any number from the message or caller. Ask them to stop or reverse the payment and freeze the account.
- 2 If you paid by gift card, wire, or an app (Zelle, Venmo, Cash App): contact that company immediately and report it as fraud. Acting fast sometimes recovers the money.
- 3 Report to the FBI at ic3.gov and the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov. The sooner, the better.
What to do right now
- 1 End the call immediately and do not send money — real law enforcement never demands phone payment to keep a case open
- 2 Call your local police department, court clerk, or domestic violence advocacy center using a number you look up yourself
- 3 Protective orders are free — if anyone tells you there is a fee to file, it is a scam
- 4 Contact your local domestic violence shelter, legal aid clinic, or Family Justice Center for free support
- 5 Inform your assigned detective, victim advocate, or prosecutor about the call so they can log it
- 6 Report to the FTC at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov and the FBI's IC3 at https://www.ic3.gov.
Red flags
- ⚠ Call arrives shortly after an arrest, court hearing, or court date when you may be most anxious and likely to believe it
- ⚠ The caller uses real details from your case — the abuser's name, court date, case number, or charge — to seem legitimate
- ⚠ They claim you must pay immediately to post bond, process electronic monitoring, or keep the abuser in custody
- ⚠ They say the district attorney will drop the charges if you don't pay — legitimate DAs never dismiss cases for non-payment
- ⚠ No legitimate law enforcement or court will ever call to demand payment to keep a case moving
- ⚠ Filing a protective order and accessing victim services is free in every US state
Sources
- NC Attorney General Jeff Jackson — Warning to North Carolinians: scams targeting domestic violence victims (Sep 17, 2026)
- WECT — NC officials warn of scam using court records to target domestic violence survivors (Sep 17, 2026)
- FBI IC3 — PSA260917: Law enforcement impersonation fraud, 61,000 complaints and $1.6B losses (Sep 17, 2026)
- WMBF News — New scam targeting domestic violence victims in Robeson County (Sep 19, 2026)