Daytona Beach Police Department Searching for Jury Duty Fraud Suspects.

Written by Kristen Schmutz

Belden Communications News

The Daytona Beach Police Department is seeking the public’s help in finding suspects who are using the name of a high-ranking member of the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office (VCSO) to swindle people out of money.

According to a release from DBPD, the Criminal Investigations Division is working on six incidents, of which three incidents involved money being exchanged between the victims and the suspects.

All of the victims are over the age of 65, according to CID Captain Jennifer Krosschell.

It has been reported that victims have received phone calls from someone who claims to be VCSO Division Chief, Brian Henderson. During the call, “Henderson” tells the victims their names are on an arrest warrant for failing to show for jury duty., before being pressured to pay right away to avoid a trip to the Volusia County Jail.

In the cases where money was exchanged, the scammers ordered each of the victims to physically drive that cash to a public location identified by the suspects, where the victims – or someone the victims trusted – handed the money over to a waiting accomplice.

“No law enforcement agency would ever operate in such a manner,” said Krosschell. “If someone calls you with a story like that, it is almost certainly someone trying to trick you out of your money or something of value. Don’t fall for it. Call us instead.”

“We’re positive there are more victims out there,” Krosschell added. “We would like them to come forward and tell us what they know so we can find whoever’s orchestrating this scam and put them behind bars.”

Jury duty is currently suspended in Volusia County due to the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Earlier this month (October 5), CID detectives arrested 33-year-old Pierra V. Terrell on felony charges of theft and fraud for her role as an accomplice in one of the known cases. No other arrests have been made in connection to those cases.

Anyone who is a victim of a scam like this or has information to share about the suspects is urged to fill out an online form or contact Detective Eric Hinkson right away at (386) 671-5216 or HinksonEric@dbpd.us.

Those who wish to remain anonymous can also contact Crime Stoppers of Northeast Florida at 888-277-TIPS (8477).