TAMPA - The Tampa Police Department is warning residents about a recent increase in phone scams.

What they're saying:

"We're seeing an uptick. So I would say, on average, I get one (phone scam) a week, and the last two weeks, I've had nine (total)," Tampa police department Det. Hope Dauphin told FOX 13. "So there's definitely been an increase recently and especially a trend."

What we know:

Scammers are smart: Sometimes they call victims, pretending to be with a law enforcement agency. They explain there’s some sort of urgent problem, and money is needed to fix it.

"Just to kind of pull on people’s heartstrings: That their relative is in jail or that they themselves have a warrant for missing jury duty," Dauphin said. "And so there's a panic that sets in and then that results in them

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