Tax Scams

[indago]

Lumberton police are warning residents of a scam in which a person calls claiming to be from the Internal Revenue Service and demands money

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The scammers:

• Declare that taxes are owed to IRS

• Threaten the recipient

• Demand payment

So, don't be confusing these scammers with actual IRS agents, who:

• Declare that taxes are owed to IRS

• Threaten the recipient

• Demand payment

 

[Granny]

This scam has been around for awhile, but bears being brought up again. The IRS does not make phone calls to collect taxes - you will be notified by mail if there is an issue.

There's another similar "government" scam as well. The last one I received was from an Indian saying I owed money to the "US Department of Vegetables." Right.

 

[Iceweasel]

I was told that if I did not contribute to the United States Federal Department of Federal Redundancies that they would confiscate my entire Hummel Doll collection recently purchased from Craigslist.

 

[Granny]

I was told that if I did not contribute to the United States Federal Department of Federal Redundancies that they would confiscate my entire Hummel Doll collection recently purchased from Craigslist.

Ice ... c'mon ... the OP is talking about real scams. I've had the calls myself, seriously, and so do the elderly people I take care of. Elders are particularly at risk unless they have an advocate who can stand in for them. Another scam concerns their calls about their computer needing repair and it can be taken care of over the phone. Sure it can ... all they have to do is give up their credit card number. If there's no computer in the house there has been no call for repairs to be made.

I know you meant no harm by your post, but the OP had a legitimate reason for the post and was just trying to give people on the board a heads-up.

 

[Iceweasel]

I was told that if I did not contribute to the United States Federal Department of Federal Redundancies that they would confiscate my entire Hummel Doll collection recently purchased from Craigslist.

Ice ... c'mon ... the OP is talking about real scams. I've had the calls myself, seriously, and so do the elderly people I take care of. Elders are particularly at risk unless they have an advocate who can stand in for them. Another scam concerns their calls about their computer needing repair and it can be taken care of over the phone. Sure it can ... all they have to do is give up their credit card number. If there's no computer in the house there has been no call for repairs to be made.

I know you meant no harm by your post, but the OP had a legitimate reason for the post and was just trying to give people on the board a heads-up.

I'm all for protecting the elderly, many are my customers. But at some point family needs to step in and take the check book/credit card/car keys away. And not rely on forum discussion boards for news.

 

[Granny]

I seriously doubt any of the elders I get assigned to care for are getting on any message boards for any reason...let alone getting their news. Families are involved, believe me. It doesn't matter that the elders have no checkbooks or credit cards ... the calls, mail, etc. keep coming anyway and it's annoying as hell. But there are elders who have no one and can't afford to have someone come into their home, don't have family left to care for them, don't qualify for Medicare assistance, can't get into nursing homes, etc. Those people do have their checkbooks and they can be truly scared by some of these calls and don't know how to handle them. There are truly some very sad cases out there. Maybe a neighbor will drop in or they'll get "Meals on Wheels," get a ride to a doctor's office or something, but that's about it. I try to take care of my little elders to the best of my ability ... even if I do things on my personal time and "off the clock" when it comes to being paid.

I still stand by my earlier comment about the OP - this scam may be new in his/her area and it was on the evening news ... and he/she may have just wanted to warn others. No harm done.

 

[indago]

From Forbes 27 May 2016:
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The latest IRS impersonation scheme involves bogus phone calls to demanding payment for a non-existent tax, the “Federal Student Tax.” ...“These scams and schemes continue to evolve nationwide, and now they’re trying to trick students,” said IRS Commissioner John Koskinen. Koskinen advises taxpayers to “remain vigilant and not fall prey to these aggressive calls demanding immediate payment of a tax supposedly owed.”
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[indago]

From The Associated Press 6 October 2016:
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Indian police have arrested 70 people and are questioning hundreds more after uncovering a massive scam to cheat thousands of Americans out of millions of dollars by posing as U.S. tax authorities and demanding unpaid taxes, a police officer said Thursday.

According to police in Mumbai, the yearlong scam involved running fake call centers which sent voice mail messages telling U.S. nationals to call back because they owed back taxes.

Those who called back and believed the threats would fork out thousands of dollars to "settle" their case, Mumbai police officer Parag Marere said Thursday.

The scam brought in more than $150,000 a day...
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Hardly surprising, since American companies have been sending US citizens tax returns to Indian companies to process.

"It is one of the best-kept secrets among tax preparers: a growing number of accountants across the nation are using workers in India to prepare tax returns for clients in the United States." — New York Times 15 February 2004

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[waltky]

Scammers get nabbed...

India arrests dozens posing as IRS agents in scam that targeted Americans
Oct. 6, 2016 - “They were stunned to see the police,” deputy police commissioner Parag Manere, who supervised the raid, said.

Authorities in India have dropped the hammer on several "call centers" that were nerve centers for an aggressive scam intended to swindle Americans out of cash by posing as the Internal Revenue Service. Indian police said at least 70 people have been arrested for taking part in the scam and investigators are looking at hundreds more. Nine call centers were disrupted by the crackdown. "They were stunned to see the police," deputy police commissioner Parag Manere, who supervised the raid, said. "They never thought that police would raid them." The suspects were charged with extortion, fraud and the use of a criminal threat.

The goal of the scammers is simple, officials say -- call as many U.S. residents as possible, pose as an IRS agent and tell them they owe back taxes. The coup de grace comes when the scammers tell the unsuspecting, and often frightened, Americans that they will be arrested and taken to jail unless they pony up the cash immediately. Authorities say the scammers often don't raise suspicion because they speak with an American accent and they give no indication the money is going overseas. Officials say they set it up so the cash was wired to U.S. bank accounts before being transferred to India. And a lot of people fell for it.

Incredibly, the bogus IRS call centers were taking in about $150,000 per day for a year before the con was uncovered. So far, some of the big wigs of the scam have eluded capture and Indian authorities believe there are almost certainly accomplices in the United States. Indian investigators got into position to bust the IRS ring after an informant came forward a few weeks ago. Police said more than 600 other suspected scammers are under investigation and could also be arrested. Impersonating the IRS to unlawfully collect money is hardly a new concept. Several people have been arrested and charged inside the United States in recent years for doing the same thing. Authorities say millions of dollars have been swindled out of residents since the scam started about three years ago.

India arrests dozens posing as IRS agents in scam that targeted Americans