The LaPorte Police Department has received a ton of reports from residents who say they’ve been contacted by phone from someone purporting to be from the IRS. The caller tells the resident that they owe money and threaten that if they do not make arrangements to send payment they will be arrested.
Please do not give out any of your personal information over the phone, or agree to send any money. Hang up immediately. This is a SCAM and one of many ways that criminals try to con you out of your money. According to the IRS website, the IRS does not call and leave pre-recorded, urgent messages asking for a call back. In this tactic, the victim is told if they do not call back, a warrant will be issued for their arrest. Other variations may include threat of other law-enforcement agency intervention, deportation or revocation of licenses. If you receive a call you can report this to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. Use their IRS Impersonation Scam Reporting web page or contact the Federal Trade Commission. Use the FTC Complaint Assistant on FTC.gov. Add “IRS Telephone Scam” in the notes.