The Evanston Police Department has received information from several residents stating that they have received telephone calls from individuals purporting themselves to be affiliated with the Internal Revenue Service or a local utility company. The individuals claim that the resident owes money to the government or utility company and requests payment in the form of a debit/credit card or some other sort of prepaid card that can be taken over the telephone. The callers are also said to be persuasive and can be verbally aggressive, threatening to have the resident arrested or turn their utilities off if the bill is not paid. The callers also have the capabilities to alter their phone number on caller ID to make it appear legitimate.
The Evanston Police Department feels that it is important to let residents know that the Internal Revenue Service will never contact them by telephone to request immediate payment, nor will they request any payments be made by debit/credit or a prepaid type card. The Internal Revenue Service will also never contact them and threaten to have them arrested by any law enforcement agency. If residents receive an unsolicited or suspicious call from a utility company that is requesting payment or other personal information, it is recommended that the resident hang up and call the utility company back using a telephone number that can be located on a bill or other legitimate resource.