TAMPA, Fla. — The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office is warning of a "terrible" sextortion scam that is reaching local teens.
HCSO warns predators are imitating law enforcement on the phone, telling the person they have a warrant out for their arrest and demanding sexual photos and videos in exchange for freedom.
In Wesley Chapel, a 13-year-old girl was targeted by these predatory scammers.
"He was like, 'Well, this is serious. You might be going to jail for having drugs,'" Angelic Fenk told 10 Tampa Bay.
She received the threatening call earlier this month from someone claiming to be a Hillsborough County Sheriff's deputy.
"He knows my name. He's like, 'Angelica, Angelica, I need you to be serious,'" Fenk said. "You can hear police sirens in the background. So like, I'm assuming it's real."
At first, the caller asked for her Cash App information and then for sexual photos and videos.
The girl's friend recorded a moment of the call when the scammer told Angelica that she and her friend needed to perform sexual acts on each other and tape it "so they can prove they don't have any drugs inside their private parts."
"I was thinking that this dude is crazy," Fenk said. "Now I know, like, this isn't real."
Fenk's mother Saya Uchiea said she was disturbed by the call.
"Send child pornography selfie taken with a friend? That's a different level. That's disgusting. That's scary," Uchiea said.
Uchiea said all three of her children were targeted by these scam calls. In her son's case, the caller referenced an actual deputy's name and badge number.
"It hit me really hard. The reality is the kids are in danger right now. So it's very scary," Uchiea said.
In a statement, Hillsborough Sheriff Chad Chronister said his department would never call to demand money or anything else.
"I am disgusted and outraged by the behavior of these criminals. As your Sheriff, I will never stand for the victimization of any of our residents," he stated. "I wanted the community to hear me loud and clear, we will never call you about a warrant and demand money or anything else. If you receive a call like this, please hang up immediately and call 911.
"You have my word that we are using every investigative means to track down these criminals and bring them to justice."
Uchiea is urging parents to educate their children about the risks of scammers and sextortion. She said if your child has a phone, assume they could be a target.
"We cannot sugarcoat especially this situation," Uchiea said.
The Hillsborough Sheriff's County Office said there have been victims who fell for this scam, including a 17-year-old who sent scammers a video of herself having sex following the cyber threats.
They said their investigation points to these calls coming out of the Dominican Republic.
This is an ongoing investigation.