The Vestal Police Department​ have received complaints from residents reporting they have received phone calls from someone claiming to be with the IRS.


In this 'phishing' scam, the call will appear to be from the IRS or Washington D.C. The scammer will claim the recipient owes money due to an audit or face criminal charges. The caller will attempt to get the person to send money or collect personal information.


In a release from the Vestal Police department, they would like you to know that:


"The real IRS will contact you by regular mail first, if it needs to contact you at all and the IRS will never:


1) Call to demand immediate payment, nor will the agency call about taxes owed without first having mailed you a bill;

2) Demand that you pay taxes without giving you the opportunity to question or appeal the amount they say you owe;

3) Require you to use a specific payment method for your taxes, such as a prepaid debit card;

4) Ask for credit or debit card numbers over the phone; or

5) Threaten to bring in local police or other law-enforcement groups to have you arrested for not paying."


To report a scam, contact the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration at 800-366-4484 or file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission at