The Redding Police Department is informing citizens of scam phone calls taking place this tax season.
According to a press release from the Redding Police Department, many Shasta County citizens have received phone calls from people claiming to be from the IRS. The impersonators usually say that the citizen needs to wire money for back taxes due to a mistake on a prior tax filing.
The release says the fake agents often are calling from a foreign country. They usually have personal information about the citizen receiving the phone call and often threaten the person if they do not comply.
Another variation of the scam involves callers identifying themselves as police officers who say a family member has been arrested. They then ask for bail in the form of a wire transfer.
The Redding Police Department says that no legitimate law enforcement agent in the United States should attempt to collect money from citizens. And court systems that collect money for fines and taxes do not collect money via wire transfer.