Scammy robocalls and scammy telemarketers hurt more than just innocent people who answer their phones at home. They also hurt the innocent people whose phone numbers they use to display on caller ID. Like the staff of a Florida dentist’s office who can barely have a conversation with their patients before another scam call target is on the line, ready to unleash a torrent of profanities.

“I can’t function, my staff can’t function,” the dentist told CBS Miami. “The phone calls are coming in. We can’t stop the phone calls.”

It’s not clear exactly why all of these people are calling the dentist’s office. It’s located in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, and the number left on victims’ caller ID has a 202 area code for Washington, D.C.

Employees were mystified at first when the calls started coming. Sure, some people don’t like going to the dentist, but they usually don’t call up the office and threaten to report anyone to the FBI. Many of the callers provided checking account numbers or other financial information to the alleged scammers, who had called with the promise of money from the federal government.

The Secret Service and local police are on the case, but in the meantime, calls keep pouring in to the dentist’s office. They had to correspond with patients by e-mail and get a new phone number…but can’t just disconnect the old one abruptly, because that’s the number that patients have.

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