Con Artists Pretending To Work For IRS Scam Wilmette Woman
(CBS) -- A popular scam has been taken to a new level in north suburban Wilmette.
Police said that for two weeks ending Jan. 6, con artists called an elderly Wilmette resident, claiming to be Internal Revenue agents and threatening to have him arrested unless he paid $5,000 in taxes over the phone using Green Dot cards.
When he finally did so, he became suspicious, but was told that if he balked, Wilmette police would arrest him.
The resident then received a call from someone posing as "Officer Tom," which even had the Wilmette Police Caller ID correct, although police said the calls apparently originated in Pakistan and India. After that, the scammers called and mocked the man.
Police said the IRS does not demand payment over the phone and never tells those who owe to pay using Green Dot cards.