East Ridge Police Chief J.R. Reed has issued a warning regarding a phone scam that has made its way into the area. This is the same scam that Bradley County Sheriff Eric Watson alerted the residents of in his district.
The scam targets residents by phone through callers alleging to be representatives of the Internal Revenue Service. The fake “IRS agent” tells the potential victim that they are facing legal action for a tax violation, and that the only way to avoid being prosecuted is to place a certain amount of money onto a reloadable Green Dot card or other similar reloadable card. The caller then says that the account will be forgiven if an immediate payment is made to this reloadable card, and the alleged “tax violation” will be taken off the potential victim’s record.
According to information gathered about the scam, the caller speaks in broken English. The caller may use an out-of-state telephone number. If the resident does not answer the call, the caller may leave instructions or a call-back number to respond back within 24 hours. The caller may ask for a call back when money has been deposited on the Green Dot card.
If anyone receives a phone call from a scam artist, he or she should not verify or give any personal information and not give them any money or go purchase a card of any kind in order to pay a delinquent bill. This is not how the IRS handles delinquent taxes or other issues.
Most legitimate businesses or government agencies will never ask for personal information or ask for someone to purchase reloadable cards as a payment option. In order to not become a victim of a telephone scam, do not give them anything at all (information or money). It is the only way to ensure one does not become a victim of this type of criminal activity.
If anyone receives a call like this or are unsure if the caller is from a legitimate organization, they should notify the East Ridge Police Department at 622-1725 to make a report. The number to report suspicious IRS scam activity is 800 366-4484. The East Ridge Police Department wants people to be safe and avoid being the victim of a telephone scam.