Sheriff Grady Judd is warning residents to be aware of a scam that the Polk County Sheriff’s Office is seeing reported where the people are using the “Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes” name to victimize the elderly.

Here’s how the scam works: The elderly victim receives a call from someone who knows his/her full name, and who tells him/her that they are the lucky winner of the nationally-recognized “Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes.” The victim is then told to purchase a Green Dot moneypak worth several hundred dollars, and then to give that money to the suspect. The victim is assured that once this transaction takes place, he/she will receive their sizable sweepstakes earnings.