By Alex Robinson
A fraudster tried to con an elderly Flushing man out of $4,000 by impersonating a commander at the 109th Precinct, police said.
The 75-year-old man received a phone call around 2 p.m. Feb. 13 from a man claiming he was an IRS official, according to cops.
The fake IRS agent demanded that the senior put $4,000 in back taxes on a prepaid debit card, and when the elderly man expressed his skepticism, the man threatened to have a police officer call back to confirm there was a warrant for the senior’s arrest, police said.
The scammer then called back pretending to be Deputy Inspector of the 109th Precinct Brian Maguire and was able to make his appear as one that came from the precinct, police said.
The septuagenarian was still not fooled and reported the phone call to the police.
Police said this was one example of a citywide telephone scam that uses GreenDot MoneyPak cards to bilk its victims for thousands of dollars.
Reach reporter Alex Robinson by e-mail at arobinson@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4566.
