Full Notification

This week the Chula Vista Police Department received a report from a resident of an IRS scam with a new twist. In this case, the scammer called the victim impersonating an IRS agent leaving a call back number. Upon returning the call, an impersonator pretending to be an IRS agent demanded the victim pay money to avoid a lawsuit and arrest if he failed to pay. Fortunately, the victim recognized this as a scam.
When the victim hung up, he immediately received a call with the caller ID on his phone showing the actual Chula Vista Police Department’s non-emergency dispatch phone number (619 691-5151). He did not answer but later called police concerned due to seeing the caller ID showing the correct phone number to the police department.
As these scams become more sophisticated, we encourage people to be aware and stay extremely skeptical of any phone calls demanding money. The Chula Vista Police Department is not a collection agency and does not collect fines or money owed to the IRS. For additional information on IRS scams - (https://www.irs.gov/uac/Tax-Scams-Consumer-Alerts)
If you receive a suspicious call from someone claiming to be a police official, you should obtain a name and badge number, hang up, and call back (using our standard business number) to speak to the officer in order to confirm his/her identity. Remember that numbers on your phone's "caller ID" can be spoofed. Never give out any personal information unless you are sure you are speaking to an actual police officer who needs information for his/her investigation.