Full Notification

The North Aurora Police Department is warning the public about a recent scam attempt. The North Aurora Police Department hopes to prevent future victims by spreading awareness of this scam.

A victim in the 600 block of East Victoria Circle reported last week that she has been getting harassing phone calls from unknown males claiming to be with the federal government, either the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), or a local police agency, including the North Aurora Police Department, claiming that her husband has been defrauding the government or owes back taxes and they have an arrest warrant for both of them.  The callers told her that they can avoid an arrest by paying.

When the victim questioned the callers further, they became belligerent, profane, and threatened to kill her and her family.  Usually the caller ID shows that the calls are coming from New York or Washington DC but most recently they started showing as coming from the North Aurora Police Department (630/897-8705). 

One of our officers was present with the victim when three calls came in that showed the North Aurora Police phone number on the caller ID.  The first caller claimed to be with the FBI and the IRS, another claimed to be from the Oswego Sheriff’s Office, and the last claimed to be from the Oswego Police Department.  All three callers had heavy accents, possibly European, and at times were hard to understand.  Fortunately, the victim did not send any money to the scammers.

The scammers were using a process known as Caller ID Spoofing by which “callers can deliberately falsify the telephone number and/or name relayed as the Caller ID information to disguise the identity of the calling party.” (http://www.fcc.gov/guides/caller-id-and-spoofing)   Sometimes scammers will claim to be calling from your bank, credit card company, or creditor and ask you for personal information.

This scam is similar to one known as a grandparents scam, where a scammer will call the victim claiming to be their grandchild in distress and needing cash.  The caller says they were in a car accident, mugged, or incarcerated in far away and that they need cash urgently.  The caller will typically ask for secrecy and may claim that their voice sounds funny because of a nose or mouth injury.  Another variation of this scam is where the caller claims to be a government official calling on behalf of a family member.  When the victim asks to speak to their relative, the caller refuses.  In these types of scams, the spoofed caller ID may tend to give the scammer credibility with the victim and make the scam more believable.

The best defense against these scams is common sense.  Be suspicious of anyone who calls unexpectedly demanding cash.  If your relative was really in custody, they would be allowed to call you themselves.  Verify any emergencies by calling other family and friends before sending money.  If there was a warrant for your arrest, you would be asked to turn yourself in at the nearest police department, not wire money to avoid arrest.  It is unlikely that the FBI or IRS would be calling from your local police department.  If you have even the slightest doubt, look up the agency phone number yourself and call to verify the information.  Ask to speak to the investigating or arresting officer and/or your relative.  Verify that they’re really in custody. 

For more information on Caller ID Spoofing, go to http://www.fcc.gov/guides/caller-id-and-spoofing.

If you receive a suspicious call, we encourage you to report it to police.  Call us at (630) 897-8705 and we’ll be happy to send an officer to help you.