Tax Phone Scam Returns to Franklin County, Authorities Say

A tax scam we told you about earlier in the year is again hitting the Northeast Georgia area.

According to the Franklin County Sheriff’s office, persons posing as IRS agents are calling citizens informing them that they or a family member owes back taxes or are involved in tax fraud.

Sheriff’s investigators say the caller is very intimidating and makes threats of law suits and foreclosure.

But the calls are bogus and if you receive this kind of phone call, you should hang up immediately and contact your local law enforcement office.

According to the IRS spokesman Mark Green, this scam surfaced in January and has been going through the country and even though tax season is over, the scam is still widespread.

 “The way the scam works is, the taxpayer gets a call and it shows up as the Internal Revenue Service on their caller ID so the victim thinks it’s a legitmate call,”  Green said. “The scam artist tells the victim they have a tax liability and they have to pay up right now or they will be either arrested, deported, or their business license suspended.” 

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.  

Green said the scam has made its way from California to the Northeast and is now targeting victims in the Southeast.

He said hundreds of people have called the IRS to file reports of the scam in Georgia.  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.

He said if you’ve been a victim of this scam you need to contact the IRS immediately.

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Additionally, if you know you owe taxes or you think you might owe taxes, call the IRS at 800-829-1040.
The IRS employees at that line can help you with a payment issue – if there really is such an issue.
You can also file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission and use their “FTC Complaint Assistant” at FTC.gov.