Montco Sheriff Warns of Scammers Posing As Police, IRS

Telephone scammers posing as either, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office law enforcement, or IRS employees have been threatening citizens with arrest and demanding cash for alleged delinquent taxes, the sheriff's office warned in a news release.

“Several people have told me that they recently received threatening phone calls from scammers, who
said they were either from my office, or the IRS,” said Sheriff Sean P. Kilkenny in a statement. “Residents should be aware that this is an ongoing problem, and to remain cautious.”

Due to the recent increase in scam activity, the IRS reiterated scam warnings from their press release on
February 2, 2016, “Phone Scams Continue to be a Serious Threat, Remain on IRS ‘Dirty Dozen’ List of
Tax Scams for the 2016 Filing Season."

Scammers have used various methods to intimidate citizens, the sheriff's office said.

Some scammers said that citizens owe money to the IRS, or that there is a warrant out for their arrest. They have used sophisticated methods such as “spoofing” caller ids, so that it matches the telephone number of the Sheriff’s Office Warrants Division, or other phone numbers, the release states.

They also use official titles and ranks, and callback numbers that have voice mail messages closely resembling the Warrants Division phone number.

Sometimes victims are told to buy Green Dot Money Pak prepaid cards from local drugstores. Then, they
are told to call the scammers back with the prepaid card numbers.

“The Sheriff’s Office never handles money and we don’t call citizens unless a warrant has already been
issued,” Kilkenny said. “Never give out your personal information unless you initiated the call, or it’s
someone you know.”

Victims should report these fraudulent calls to their local police department.