Lawrence County Sheriff Jeff Lawless is warning residents to be on the lookout for telephone scammers who are hitting the area hard.
These crooks are trying to pull off what’s known as a government imposter scam. They call homes pretending to be from the IRS, Social Security Administration, or law enforcement agency. Sometimes they say your Social Security number has been frozen. Sometimes they claim that you owe money to the IRS or that you have an outstanding warrant that must be paid immediately. These crooks threaten you with everything from having fines to having charges filed to officers showing up at your house to arrest you. They sometimes used fake caller ID that makes it look as if the call is really coming from the government office.
They say you have to pay up right now to avoid being arrested. Real government offices will never call your home like that. They’ll also never demand payment over the phone. That’s simply not how it works. Crooks like these count on a fear response clicking in. They hope you’ll give them your information or pay up while your adrenaline is still pumping.
Sheriff Lawless says, “Please do not EVER give these SCAMMERS your personal information, banking information, or credit card information and never, never, never give them any money!!!!”
He also advises everyone to speak to their friends and family members, especially the elderly, to let them know that calls like this are always scams.