BERRIEN COUNTY — The Berrien County Sheriff’s Office is advising residents of a possible fraudulent phone scam technique.

Throughout the past couple of days, the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office has received information that an individual has been calling area residents claiming to be a sheriff’s office deputy and that a warrant has been issued for their arrest. The caller states that the criminal justice system has a new program in place, where they can post bond by using prepaid debit cards. Officials from the Berrien County Sheriff’s Department said this information is false, and reminded residents that officials from the sheriff’s office and criminal justice system will not ask for people to purchase prepaid debit cards to post bond.

The sheriff’s department is advising that if a person receives one of these fraudulent calls that they try and obtain as much information as possible, such as the number that the individual is calling from. Those who access this information are asked to contact the local police department or law enforcement agency to verify the information and file a police report, if determined to be a fraudulent call.