MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Scammers are playing on the desperation and distress of families with loved ones in jail.
“It just breaks my heart that people are doing this,” explained Kimberly Charles, the president of All n One Bonding & Insurance. “It’s just so cruel.”
Charles told FOX13 scammers are contacting the loved ones of real people incarcerated in 201 Poplar and impersonating her business. They demand payment via CashApp or Zelle for inmates’ bail.
“It’s very disheartening, because I’ve worked very hard to create and garner the reputation and the good standing that we have in the community,” she explained. “When you have someone out there that is deliberately trying to tarnish your image and your name, it really hurts.”
The bad actors are even spoofing her company’s phone number on caller ID.
Some are sending fraudulent IDs, claiming to be credentialed bondsmen in Memphis.
If you look closely, one “ID” has language that belongs to the North Carolina Department of Insurance.
“It just looks fake,” she explained.
Impersonation scams on the rise
According to the Federal Trade Commission, impersonation scams are among the top reported fraud.
Consumers lost an estimated $2.95 billion to scams impersonating both businesses and government agencies in 2025.
A spokesman for the Better Business Bureau of the Mid-South told FOX13 it can be especially harmful for small businesses that don’t always have the resources to fight the fraud.
“All they have is their good name and the reputation,” Irwin explained. “Sometimes when that’s gone, so is your business.”
If you get an unsolicited phone call from a business or law enforcement agency demanding money, hang up the phone.
Take a deep breath and contact the actual company directly.
“You just have to take a step back, look for the red flags, and not act on emotion, which is what the scammers want you to do,” Irwin explained. “That’s a tactic.”
