Collect Calls from Jail Inmates

LIBERTY, February 5, 2010 - The Liberty Police Department has received more than a few calls recently, from citizens worried about Harris County jail inmates trying to get collect calls accepted on the citizens’ residential phones. When an individual answers their phone, a recorded voice tells them the call is coming from an inmate at the Harris County Jail. If they accept the call, then realize the inmate is not someone they know, they’re instructed to dial *72 and a series of numbers to reverse the charges. Doing so doesn’t actually reverse charges. Instead, it forwards the individual’s phone, allowing a scammer to access your minutes and long distance.

Another version of the scam has the inmate saying something like, “Please help… I’ve been arrested for traffic tickets. I was supposed to pick up my children from school… this was my only phone call and I dialed the wrong number… Please dial *72 xxx-xxx-xxxx for me so I can check on my children.” Again, the individual’s phone will be forwarded.

If you receive one of these collect phone calls from jail, and you don’t feel like anyone you know or care about is calling from jail, just hang up the phone. If you think someone could be calling legitimately, then accept the call and realize it’s not someone you know, hang up the phone with out dialing the *72 instructions. You will still have to pay for that short collect call, but it’s nothing in comparison to what would happen to your phone bill if you completed the *72 forwarding instructions.

There are a couple of other possibilities for citizens to avoid being scammed by a jail inmate. You can contact SBC at 888-815-9102, or your phone service provider, and have calls originating from the Harris County Jail blocked. If you have been victimized by the *72 scam, contact the Harris County Jail at 1-800-984-8800. They can also block inmate pay phones from dialing your number.