THE APEX TIMES
The department says an unknown person is using an officer’s name to ask for payment, claiming it relates to a supposed failure to appear for jury duty.
Nicholasville police said they are aware of an officer-impersonation scam in which an unknown person is using an officer’s name to contact members of the public and request payment, according to a warning released Tuesday.
In the alert, the police department said the scheme involves claims that payment is needed to address an alleged absence from jury duty. The department did not indicate that the officer was involved in the communications or that any payment requests were authorized by the department.
The police warning comes as questions about jury duty enforcement and court procedures can be especially sensitive for residents, who may feel pressure to respond quickly to messages that appear to come from law enforcement or judicial-related channels. Nicholasville police said the scam is being conducted using the officer’s name, raising the risk that recipients could mistake the outreach for an official instruction.
Police did not specify the methods used to reach potential victims, such as calls, texts, or messages through social media, in the report. The department also did not provide details about how the alleged jury duty absence claim is being presented or what payment forms are being requested.
Officials’ statement centered on the impersonation aspect, warning that the department’s personnel and systems are being misused. The department’s goal, according to the warning, is to keep residents from being misled by communications that use an officer’s identity.
If residents receive similar messages, the department’s alert indicates they should treat the contact as unauthorized and not as an official demand. The department’s statement did not describe additional steps for recipients beyond raising the alarm about the scam.
Nicholasville police said the individual behind the outreach remains unknown, and the department did not announce any arrests tied to the case in the published warning. Residents who believe they may have been targeted are expected to report the communications to law enforcement through the department’s standard channels.
The department’s warning underscores how scams can leverage familiar public processes, such as jury service, to create urgency and confusion. For court-related matters, the department’s statement points to the need for residents to rely on verified, official communications rather than messages that appear to come from authorities using a specific officer’s name.
