The Plymouth Police Department is warning residents of recent, ongoing scams. These scams are not unique to Plymouth, but extra vigilance could save money and prevent headaches.

IRS Scams
Residents should be cautious whenever they receive an unsolicited email or phone call – especially if the sender claims to be from the Internal Revenue Service or any other government agency or financial institution. These messages may contain information that refers to a tax refund or warns about unreported income. They may ask users to submit personal or financial information via phone or email.

Sometimes, perpetrators will call claiming the victim owes money to the IRS – and the caller ID may even falsely show the origin of the call as that of the IRS, Hennepin County or other reputable agency. Emails may instruct the victim to follow a link to a website that requests personal information (phishing scam) or contains malicious code (malware or a virus).

“No legitimate government or law enforcement agency is going to contact people and ask that they wire money to someone,” said Plymouth Police Sgt. Heath Bird. “If residents have questions regarding the legitimacy of a call they receive, they should hang up, go online to find the agency’s number and call them back.”

Plymouth investigators have noticed an uptick in reports of similar scams targeting immigrants. In these cases, the perpetrators will call immigrants and claim that they owe back-taxes – and threaten to deport them if they do not wire money right away. In other cases, perpetrators may claim that there’s a problem with an immigrant’s VISA and will also threaten deportation if funds are not promptly sent.

“Not much can be done to prosecute these crimes as the calls often originate overseas and are untraceable. It’s really unfortunate for victims who are losing out on a lot of money,” added Bird.

Residents should follow these tips:

• Never reply to an unsolicited request for personal or financial information or give out information over the phone without verifying the facts.
• If a call sounds questionable, hang up and call the agency themselves. 
• Never click on links or open attachments in unsolicited email messages. To report a scam email claiming to be from the IRS or an affiliate, email phishing@irs.gov. 
• Maintain up-to-date antivirus software.

Craigslist/Online Purchasing Scams
There are many Craigslist-type online purchasing scams to which victims fall prey. Residents who think they’ve witnessed an online scam/crime can file a complaint at ic3.gov.

Residents should follow these tips: 

• Always meet in a public location, never an intersection or parking lot.
• Trust your feelings. If you feel uncomfortable, leave immediately.
• Arrive early and check out the location. If it doesn’t seem right, leave. 
• Ask yourself if the deal is too good to be true. If it is, the item may be stolen, or it may be a setup. 
• Never go alone. Always tell someone where you are going and provide him or her with all of the meeting information. 
• Do not take checks or make change for large bills.