Des Plaines man loses $5,000 in IRS scam

Thieves stole $5,000 from a Des Plaines man Nov. 25 and tried to get even more using a now common IRS-related scam, according to Des Plaines police reports.

The victim received a voice-mail message from a woman claiming to be "Lauren Matthews" from the IRS who said he owned money to the agency. The victim called the phone number left in the message and spoke with someone claiming to be "David Cooper," who told the victim he was Lauren's supervisor. He told the victim to purchase Green Dot cards and give him the numbers.

After the man did as he was instructed, the scammer told him he needed to send more money. The Des Plaines resident said he needed to speak with his accountant first.

The victim then received a phone call that appeared to be from the Des Plaines Police Department. The caller said he needed to send more money or there would be a warrant for his arrest. He hung up and then received another call, this time from someone called "Jack Dawson," who told the victim he was from the Department of Motor Vehicles and that his and his wife's driver's licenses were canceled and that they can no longer drive unless the give the money. The victim refused to send any more cash.