“What’s New in County 22?”

          Lately at the sheriff’s office, we have had a lot of inmates we have been housing for other counties.  While this makes a little more work for us, we seem to be doing okay with it.  This last month we brought in over $15,000 dollars in revenue for housing inmates from other counties.  That usually jumps around quite a bit.  One month we might have a bunch of inmates and another month none.  This last month we were at around 26 or 27 inmates and our average is usually around 15.  We can hold 44 but that is divided up with various cells depending on their classification.  We have work release inmates, males, females, isolated cell, holding cell, and convicted or not convicted are also separated. 

          If it ever quits raining, I know there are a lot of farmers itching to get into the fields.  I have said it time and time again, we need to slow down and take our time.  Give the farmers a “brake”.  They are out trying to make a living like you and I.  If you come up behind a farmer never pass at the crest of a hill and do not pass if there is an intersection or I recommend driveway coming up.  A long time ago, I passed a tractor in a passing lane.  As we came up to a driveway midway through the pass, the farmer turned left without looking and we almost collided.  Just a suggestion.  Farmers are also going to be moving larger equipment down the roadways from field to field.  Please yield to them and give them a little more room.  Farmers please do not rush your harvest causing an accident and have a safe harvest.

          Also in the upcoming month, we will have Leaf lookers out that may be driving slower.  Be patient and try not to get road rage because that only makes the situation worse.  Stay alert on the roadways.  The daylight hours are diminishing more every day, which can create unfamiliar driving conditions.  Watch for pedestrians, cyclists and other roadway users. 

A DNR officer told me the other day that he believed the deer numbers are up and with the crops coming out of the fields they will be moving more.  Don’t veer for deer.  Brake don’t swerve.  If you see a deer cross the roadway, watch for more.  Deer are pack animals and rarely travel alone.  If you hit a deer, pull to the side of the road as soon as it is safe to do so.  Turn on your hazard lights and call 911 or our office. 

And if you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact me anytime, e-mail me at mtschirgi@claytoncountyia.gov, or stop by to see me.

Thanks and be safe,

Sheriff Mike Tschirgi

“What’s New in County 22?”

          We have had a wide variety of items going on at the sheriff’s office lately.  It seems like we are always busy but besides a few accidents we have had some thefts.  Most recently a few motorcycles stolen from the chicken ridge area near Elkader.  1971 and 1974 Honda models.  There have also been some burglaries to funeral homes in northeast Iowa.  Drug activity has picked up again and a lot of traffic control for different events in our area.    

          On Saturday, September 28^th, 2019 we are assisting in the 2^nd annual Driving Out Sexual Violence Golf Outing.  It is a 4-person best ball tournament held at the Guttenberg golf course.  It costs $50 per person or $200 per team.  This includes prizes, silent auction and lunch.  All money raised is used to assist victims of sexual abuse and first responders in Clayton County.  Common expenses are fuel, lodging, meals, and clothing for victims as well as training and equipment needs for SANE nurses, advocates, prosecutors, and law enforcement.  Additional expenses come in the form of community awareness projects. If you would like to just donate and not golf, you may do that also.  Please contact Brent Ostrander at the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office for more information or check out our website or Facebook pages.

          Once again, I would like to inform every one of recent scams in our area.  Several people have called in on these scams.  They are targeting mainly cell phones advising that their Social Security number has been hacked and are asking several questions including what the last four digits of your social security number are.  Do not give them any information and just hang up.  Another scam is the threat of an arrest warrant out for you.  You are to call and speak to an officer who is a scammer and attempts to get personal information from you.  Do not give out any information if you think something is foul. 

And if you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact me anytime, e-mail me at mtschirgi@claytoncountyia.gov, or stop by to see me.

Thanks and be safe,

Sheriff Mike Tschirgi

“What’s New in County 22?”

This month in my article, I would like to talk about “spoofing” and robocalls.  I have been receiving at least five or more phone calls a day on my cell phone from telemarketers lately.  The phone number that comes up is a local cell phone number.  I answer it because I am the sheriff and it may be a Clayton County resident calling to ask me a question.  When I answer, it tells me I can lower my interest rate or my warranty is running out on my vehicle.  This is called “Spoofing”. 

Spoofing is when a caller deliberately falsifies the information transmitted to your caller ID display to disguise their identity.  Scammers often use neighbor spoofing so it appears that an incoming call is coming from a local number or a spoof number from a company or a government agency that you may already know and trust.  If you answer, they use scam scripts to try to steal your money or valuable personal information, which can be used in fraudulent activity.  I recently did have a resident call me and stated he received a missed phone call from me.  I did not call the resident and presume it was spoofing as well.  Here is some information from the Federal Communications Commission:

You may not be able to tell right away if an incoming call is spoofed.  Be extremely careful about responding to any request for personal identifying information.

• Do not answer calls from unknown numbers.  If you answer such a call, hang up immediately.
• If you answer the phone and the caller – or a recording – asks you to hit a button to stop getting the calls, you should just hang up.  Scammers often use this trick to identify potential targets.
• Do not respond to any questions, especially those that can be answered with “Yes” or “No.”
• Never give out personal information such as account numbers, Social Security numbers, mother’s maiden names, passwords or other identifying information in response to unexpected calls or if you are at all suspicious.
• If you get an inquiry from someone who says they represent a company or a government agency, hang up and call the phone number on your account statement, in the phone book, or on the company’s or government agency’s website to verity the authenticity of the request.  You will usually get a written statement in the mail before you get a phone call from a legitimate source, particularly if the caller is asking for a payment.
• Use caution if you are being pressured for information immediately.
• Talk to your phone company about call blocking tools and check into apps that you can download to your mobile device.  The FCC allows phone companies to block robocalls by default base on reasonable analytics.  More information about robocall block is available at fcc.gov/robocalls. 

And if you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact me anytime, e-mail me at mtschirgi@claytoncountyia.gov, or stop by to see me.

Thanks and be safe,

Sheriff Mike Tschirgi