Whether Pearl River County residents have completed their tax returns or not, they should be on the lookout for suspicious phone calls.

Throughout Pearl River County and Mississippi, some citizens have received phone calls from scammers using unknown numbers pretending to be from the Internal Revenue Service.

The scammer starts the call by claiming there’s been an error with the person’s tax return and asks for the recipient’s personal information or a payment. The scammer informs the potential victim that if they do not follow instructions, they will be arrested.

Pearl River County Sheriff’s Department Chief Deputy Shane Tucker said people who receive a call of this nature should simply hang up the phone and refuse to provide any personal information.

“It’s important to remember that the IRS already has your personal information and if they need to get in touch with you, they will do so strictly through written correspondence,” Tucker said. “People need to be aware that calls of this nature are always a scam.”

According to IRS.gov, when a person receives a call from someone representing the IRS, ask for their entire name and employee number and hang up. Then call 1-800-366-4484 to verify that the caller was actually an IRS employee.

“The IRS doesn’t initiate contact with taxpayers by email, text messages or social media channels to request personal or financial information,” the IRS website states

Tucker said that the Pearl River County Sheriff’s Department, or any local law enforcement department, does not arrest people for the IRS. The IRS handles those issues internally.