YORK COUNTY, S.C. – A new scam is plaguing the York County community, and it’s targeting families of YCSO inmates. The new scam is a new police impersonation scheme where con artists are pretending to be members of the YCSO staff to coerce victims into sending them money under false pretenses.
Recently, scammers have been impersonating Captain Shane Kitchen, claiming that sending money will help bail out a loved one. Additionally, they have posed as representatives from the Detention Center or York County magistrate bond court, falsely offering to sell ankle monitors for bail purposes. The Sheriff’s Office does not have ankle monitors or sell them. Ankle monitors, when required, are provided by bail bondsmen as part of bond conditions.
In another alarming tactic, scammers have falsely claimed a health emergency at the detention center, urging people to quickly bond out their loved ones to avoid danger. This claim is baseless. The last detainee death occurred in February due to a health complication, and the YCSO promptly released information about it. Any true emergency or multiple deaths in the detention center would be publicly communicated, and measures would be taken to prevent further incidents.
Scammers access the most visited page on yorkcountysheriff.com—the inmates’ page—to find names and then search for their relatives’ contact information. They call these relatives, demanding money through electronic means such as the Cash App, Venmo, PayPal, or gift cards. These demands for electronic payment are clear indicators of a scam.
The scam calls are believed to originate from numbers in Columbia and Charleston, SC, though this has not been confirmed.
Residents should be aware that they cannot buy their way out of an arrest warrant, and the York County Sheriff’s Office never demands money for any reason over the phone. If you receive such a call, it is a scam, and you should hang up immediately. If you are concerned for the welfare of a family member housed at the York County Detention Center, you can call 803-628-3080 and speak to a real YCDC representative.
