If someone calls saying they can get your relative out of the Vermilion Parish jail for a fee, hang up and call the jail. That’s the warning from Sheriff Eddie Langlinais and Warden Sammy LaPorte of the Vermilion Parish Correctional Center.

In a statement released Monday, the Sheriff’s Office said it has had reports of scammers phoning the families of people recently booked into the jail and demanding money in exchange for a promised release. The callers make the pitch believable by using details anyone can find in public arrest records, such as the person’s name and the charges they were booked on.

“We have received reports of scammers contacting family members and requesting money under the false promise of securing their loved one’s release from jail,” the statement said. Langlinais and LaPorte urged families “to remain vigilant and never send money without first verifying the legitimacy of the request by contacting VPCC at (337) 898-4430.”

How to protect yourself

  • Knowing the charge proves nothing. Arrest information is public, so a caller who knows it is not necessarily calling from the jail or a court.
  • Don’t pay a stranger who calls you. Don’t wire money, buy gift cards or give out bank or card numbers to anyone who contacts you out of the blue about a release.
  • Call the jail yourself. Use the number in the Sheriff’s statement above, or the correctional center’s line on the Sheriff’s Office website, (337) 898-4424, which is staffed around the clock.

Deputies seek suspect in LA 167 theft

In a separate case, the Sheriff’s Office is asking for help identifying a man it says stole from Sunshine Quality Solutions on LA 167.

Deputies say surveillance video caught the man carrying off a Stihl string trimmer and several batteries made by John Deere. His car was a blue Dodge Dart, black racing stripe along the side, possibly wearing a fake temporary tag, according to the Sheriff’s Office. No one has been charged.

Anyone who recognizes the man or the car is asked to call Detective Sonya Couvillon of the Sheriff’s Criminal Investigations Division at (337) 898-4403. To stay anonymous, call Crime Stoppers of Vermilion at (337) 740-8477, which can pay a cash reward for tips that lead to an arrest.