Warning! IRS Scam Working in Lake Charles

Back on the 22nd of this month, Lake Charles Police became aware of a scam that is currently being operated in the Lake Area. The scam, according to the official press release, is being worked mainly by phone. The caller will identify themselves as representing an official agency of one type or another. In this case, the caller claimed to be with the IRS and even used the name of a real agent. The caller will them inform you that you have delinquent taxes and that you will be arrested unless they are paid as soon as possible.

The victim was instructed to purchase some type of prepaid card and call him back at a phone number he provided and give them the prepaid card number on the back. The money would then be transferred to the suspect(s) private account.

In the case cited, at one point, a caller not only claimed to be an active police officer, but he used a real police officers name. Despite knowing that a police officer was on the scene, the caller continued to try to extort money. These people are tenacious, because throughout the day, the intended victim continued to get calls form the fake IRS. Each time the intended victim was called, the caller would claim to be an official of some kind and each time they called, the tried to extort money,

If you should get a call from someone claiming to be with the IRS, or any government agency, just know that these are not tactics used by any of the real givernment agencies.

According to the press release from the LCPD:

The IRS does not handle collections in this manner.  If you received a phone call of this nature from an individual identifying themselves as an Agent of the Internal Revenue Service stating that you must pay an outstanding debit within a certain time by purchasing a prepaid card and giving them the prepaid card number, THIS IS A SCAM.  Do not comply and notify your local law-enforcement agency.