Kennewick cops: When scammers call, just hang up

The Kennewick Police Department issued a fresh warning Thursday that telephone scammers are preying on area residents.

A local resident reported receiving two scam calls within 30 minutes of each other. One appeared to come from the non-emergency number for the SECOMM 911 dispatch center.

In the first, a man with an Indian accent claimed to represent the Internal Revenue Service and demanded payment for past due taxes. The phony IRS demand is a common scam that nets criminals tens of millions of dollars from American victims.

The recipient recognized it as a scam and hung up.

Thirty minutes later, the same person received a call that spoofed the SECOMM non-emergency number.

The caller, who had an Indian accent, claimed to be from the Kennewick Police Department and demanded payment for an arrest warrant, saying if they failed to pay they would be arrested.

The resident hung up.

Scammers commonly use fear to override the victim’s natural doubts.

The police department reminds residents that neither the IRS nor law enforcement will call anyone demanding payments for fines.

“The best course of action is to hang up on the caller,” the department said.

For more information about protecting yourself and loved ones from scams, visit AARP’s Fraud Watch site. AARP produced a video interview with a former scammer from Mumbai, which is embedded with this post.

Washington residents who suspect they are targets or victims of scammers should file complaints with the Washington Attorney General’s office.

This story was originally published June 1, 2017 at 12:31 PM with the headline "Kennewick cops: When scammers call, just hang up."