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LARKSVILLE – Frank Yanchus received a phone call Monday from man who identified himself as an Internal Revenue Service agent who threatened to have him arrested.
“He (the caller) sounded very official, providing his name and employee identification number,” Yanchus said. “He said an audit of my 2008 to 2012 tax returns showed I owed $2,754.”
Yanchus said he was told several attempts were made to reach him. The caller told Yanchus a warrant has been issued for his arrest for nonpayment.
This type of intimidation technique is on the rise. In March, the grandmother of Luzerne County District Attorney Stefanie Salavantis reported a similar phone call.
The IRS is aware of a surge in phone and email scams during tax season. Con artists threaten arrest, deportation and license revocation to bully taxpayers into releasing funds or financial information.
Yanchus said he was “taken back” with the knowledge the Washington state-based caller had, which included his address.
Yanchus filed a report with the Larksville Borough Police Department.
“If someone calls unexpectedly claiming to be from the IRS with aggressive threats if you don’t pay immediately, it’s a scam artist calling,” John Koskinen, IRS commissioner said in an online press release. “The first IRS contact with taxpayers is usually through the mail. Taxpayers have rights, and this is not how we do business.”
Thomas Heaney, owner of Liberty Tax Service in Shavertown, said the IRS will start the collection process with a letter.
“You would receive a couple of letters before they would send certified mail,” Heaney said. “The IRS would never contact a taxpayer by phone.”
Heaney advises taxpayers to hang up immediately.
“Don’t give them the time of day,” Heaney said.
According to the IRS website, www.irs.gov, if a taxpayer believes they owe taxes, they should ask the caller for their badge number and contact phone number. They can call the IRS at 1-800-829-1040 to confirm.
To report scam calls, taxpayers can report the incident to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration by calling 1-800-366-4484, or at www.tigta.gov.
Phishing is another avenue taxpayers are conned into providing financial information. Taxpayers are advised not to open any attachments or links within an email claiming to be from the IRS. The IRS requests phishing emails be forward to phishing@irs.gov and then delete it.