New scam text creates fear, drives Fresno residents to traffic court

FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – The Fresno County Sheriff’s Office reports a new scam has created anxiety and fear for drivers – a scam the DMV says has hit not only local residents, but also people all around the state.

“The most recent scam we’ve been seeing is text messages going to random people that they have traffic violations that they need to take care of,” said Tony Botti, public information officer for the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.

Each text claims that if you don’t ‘pay,’ there could be consequences that range from registration suspension, criminal prosecution, and even your credit score being affected. However, Botti says it’s all fake.

Still, they have left so many people worried, and a lot of them continue to visit the county traffic court in Downtown Fresno.

“Luckily, our deputies here at the traffic court let them know that, ‘Hey, this is not real. Just ignore it,'” Botti said. “In the end, these people have wasted their valuable time. They’ve been scared thinking, ‘Hey, did I do something wrong? I’d better get to court and get this cleared, I don’t want it on my record.'”

Multiple people, meanwhile, said that they were there for the same fear, and that they were thankful to get it cleared up. The information officer supervisor for the California Department of Motor Vehicles says it can happen to anyone.

“I’ve received 10 or 15 in the last month myself on my personal cell phone. My family has received them. My wife, just the other day, called me up and said she received it,” Chris Orrock, information officer supervisor with the California DMV, said.

Orrock says the DMV has been contacted constantly regarding this exact scam, a scam he says has spread across the state in the past month-plus.

Both he and Botti agree: don’t click these payment links and always verify the source of the messages if you believe it could be real.

“The California DMV will never send a text message asking for payment. The only text message you’ll get from the California DMV is if you sign up for an appointment, and on the day of your appointment, it’s going to remind you of your appointment,” Orrock said.

“If you travel to the Bay Area or the Los Angeles area, they have toll roads, but ask yourself, ‘Did I drive through any of these?’ And even if you did you’re going to get a picture of your vehicle and license plate in the mail, with any fees that you owe,” Botti said.

At this time, law enforcement says there is not much they can do if you report the scams directly to them. Instead, they ask you to report these scams to the Federal Trade Commission.

For more examples of scams in our region, click here.