IRS Impersonators Target Lavonia Citizens

Tax season may be over but the tax scams continue.

This week, callers to WLHR News from the Lavonia area reported receiving calls from people claiming to be with the IRS telling them they owed the IRS money and demanding they pay up.

According to Georgia IRS spokesman Mark Green, this scam has been around for about a year.
Green said the caller sounds very official. Victims are told to pay immediately via a pre-loaded debit card or wire transfer. Green said if the victim refuses the caller becomes hostile and insulting.

If the victim hangs up on the scam artist, Green said they soon receive yet another threatening phone call.

“The scam artist will call back using another number that shows up on the caller ID as a local law enforcement office and then pretends to be an investigator. They identify themselves as law enforcement and tell the victim they are working with the IRS and that if they don’t pay, they will be arrested or deported,” Green said.

If the victim hangs up on the scam artist, Green said they often receive yet another threatening phone call.

Green reminds taxpayers that the IRS never calls or emails a taxpayer asking for money and they will never ask for your personal or banking information.

Additionally, the IRS will never demand that you pay taxes without giving you the opportunity to question or appeal the amount they say you owe.

Nor will they require you to use a specific payment method for your taxes, such as a prepaid debit card.

And the IRS will never ask for credit or debit card numbers over the phone or threaten to bring in local police or other law-enforcement groups to have you arrested for not paying.

Green said if you’ve been a victim of this scam you need to contact the IRS immediately by calling toll-free 1-800-829-1040.

He said you should also contact the Federal Trade Commission and use their “FTC Complaint Assistant” at FTC.gov. Please add “IRS Telephone Scam” to the comments of your complaint.