'Alarm And Fear' In Scam Near Pottstown

West Pottsgrove Police are warning residents of a new scam that attempts to blackmail money from residents by telling them that their family members have been kidnapped and will be hurt.

The Pottstown Mercury reports:

Police have been receiving calls about scams that they say are designed to “create alarm and fear in the recipient of the phone call.” The caller usually tells the recipient that a loved one is in a car accident or in prison and demands money from the recipient in order to help the family member, police said in a press release Monday.

Additional phone scams were also reported involving callers pretending to be from the IRS. The caller usually contacts a resident by phone and threatens the resident with arrest and legal action if money is not wired to an account to clear their name. The caller is always hostile and does not allow the recipient to ask any questions, police said.

The scam is not endemic to West Pottsgrove, as similar calls have been reported in Pottstown and previously throughout Bucks and Montgomery Counties.