CHARLOTTE, NC — Scammers are posing at tax collectors to try to rip you off this holiday season.
North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper joined U.S. Attorney Anne Tompkins, along with leaders from the Department of the Treasury and the Better Business Bureau Friday to warn people about the scam.
Here’s what happens: the caller claims to be with the IRS, demands payment for unpaid taxes, and even threatens to arrest you if you don’t pay up. Local reverend Al Cadenhead told WCCB Charlotte how he became a victim.
“To look back and realize that you were that naive is very embarrassing, to be honest,” he said. “And my only reason for going public is simply to help other folks not have to live through that.”
So far this year, more than a thousand people have been targeted. The scammer can often manipulate the victim’s caller ID, so it looks like the IRS is calling.
The IRS wants local tax payers to know they will never ask for credit or debit information over the phone, nor will they threaten to arrest you if you don’t pay. If you think you’re being targeted in this type of scam, ask for the caller’s information, then hang up the phone. Then call the IRS to see if you have an outstanding balance.
