Brown County Sheriff's Office Bond/Phone scam alert:
Multiple sources, including the Brown County Sheriff's Office, have confirmed the details of the scam described where scammers impersonate officers to demand bail/bond money. Law enforcement authorities and victims report that these callers are using tactics to appear legitimate, including phone number spoofing and citing specific local inmate and court information.
What you need to know:
- Scammers call pretending to be officers. These individuals claim a loved one is in jail and needs bail/bond money immediately.
- Spoofed phone numbers are used. Scammers use technology to make their phone number appear to be a real, local 920 number, or even the official Brown County Sheriff's Office phone number.
- Bogus payment methods are demanded. Imposters ask for payment via methods to insulate offenders from identification such as Bitcoin, Venmo, CashApp, gift cards, or prepaid debit cards.
- Official agencies will never demand payment over the phone. Law enforcement officers will never call or text you demanding money for a citation, warrant, or bail/bond to avoid arrest.
- Bail/bond procedures are specific. For legitimate cases, bail or bond payments must be made in person at the Brown County Jail or through the official third-party online service, www.allpaid.com.
- Do not follow instructions from suspicious callers. Hang up immediately and do not give out any personal or financial information.
- Verify the call directly. If you receive a call like this, look up the Brown County Sheriff's Office's official number on their website and call them directly to confirm the situation. Do not use any phone numbers given to you by the suspicious caller. How to pay bail/bond legitimately in Brown CountyOnline: Use the official service at allpaid.com.
- In-person: Go directly to the Brown County Jail to post bond.
Please fill out all of the below information, once completed, submit the form and you will be given the link to follow to the AllPaid site to enter your payment details. Once the bond is paid through AllPaid, we will be notified and will complete the bond process.
Minimum service fee on all card transactions - $3.99.
Minimum service fee on all eChecks- $2.00
Fees for making a payment with the Call Center representative assistance- $3.50 per transaction
Service Fee for cash bail transactions- 8.5% with a minimum charge of $10.00 and a $3.50 fee for call center representative -assisted transactions.
**Anyone wishing to post bond with a cashier’s check will have to wait for their loved one to be released until the check clears at the bank. This process could take approximately 10-15 business days from the following Tuesday, after the bond has been posted, for the check to clear. Once it has cleared at the bank, the inmate will be released
