Dec. 19, 2014. The Watauga County Sheriff’s Office has received numerous reports from citizens about being contacted by telephone from individuals claiming to be with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
The fraudulent callers often tell citizens that they are under “audit” by the IRS or they will be subject to legal action such as arrest or law suits. Citizens are then urged to quickly wire money via a PayPal account by obtaining a pre-paid credit cards or money transfers.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) does not contact individuals via telephone and request money. Official IRS communication is always done via the U.S. Postal Service. If you are telephoned by someone claiming to be a representative of the IRS, do not provide any personal information or submit money through PayPal or means of credit or debit cards.
Many times these callers can be very persistent and convincing even to the point of having other individuals pose as supervisors.
Anyone who suspect that they have been contacted by a phony representative of the IRS or any other suspicious calls requesting immediate payment should contact law enforcement.