Criminals are out to trick you, claiming you owe the IRS hundreds of dollars.
One Treasure Coast family said it happened to them twice in one day, on the same day taxpayers got a one day extension to file their taxes.
Fortunately, this family saw right through the scams especially because the husband and wife filed their taxes early.
However, they are sharing their story to make sure others stay aware.
Cynthia Rayment received a threatening voicemail on Wednesday. The robotic voice claimed she owed IRS money.
“We have just received a notification regarding your tax filings…,” said the voicemail. “Once it get expired after that you will be taken under custody by the local cops as there are 4 serious allegations pressed on your name at this moment,” the voicemail continued in incorrect English.
“You feel like you're being watched.” said Rayment. “It makes your heart skip a beat because it’s threatening.”
Within minutes on that same day, her husband Jack got an email also claiming he needed to pay up.
“My taxes were in on time and early and my refund has already hit the bank,” said Jack Rayment.
Between that, the spelling errors and the fact that the real website is actually IRS.gov not ".com"
like it said in the email, the Rayments, saw right through these separate but scary scams.
The couple called NewsChannel 5 to warn others who could fall for the scam, especially this year when technical issues hit the IRS on tax day forcing the government to give taxpayers a one day extension.
“They like to scare people they demand that the persona pay a tax bill that does not exist,” said IRS Spokesperson Alejandra Castro-Nunez. She reiterated: the IRS won’t email, text or call, or threaten to call the police.
“These scammers work very fast and things can change in a few minutes so it’s good to be on alert all the time."