Jail inmates are performing a phone scam, in which individuals randomly call telephone numbers from a payphone in jail.
Recognizing the Scam
When someone answers the phone, the inmate tells the person that someone they know is injured and that they (the inmate) were asked to call the emergency contact person.
The inmate then asks the person to dial *72 to get more information about the injured individual. By dialing *72, it gives the inmate the ability to have control over your phone by calling any number and having it billed to your phone account.
One of our police officer experienced such a call, in which the caller identification device showed Prison plus the 773 phone number.