Watch this Police Officer Turn the Tables on an IRS Scammer

A scam-caller claiming to represent the IRS got a taste of their own medicine last week thanks to Eau Claire police officer Kyle Roder.

Officer Kyle Roder found himself the potential victim of an all too common scam attempt. He received a message from a supposed IRS representative telling him that if he did not call back immediately to settle an account issue, a warrant would be put out for his arrest.

In a video posted to the Eau Claire Police Department’s Facebook page, Officer Roder returned the call and quickly turned the tables on the would be scammer. Highlights included Roder challenging the man’s claimed name and government ID number, as well as tripping him up with several other loopholes in his story.

Kyle Roder’s video has quickly gone viral. As of March 27, just six days after it was initially posted, the clip garnered nearly 87,000 reactions, 158,000 shares and a whopping 6.6 million views. In addition, the post has over 9,000 comments, many of which laud the officer’s actions. Other people commented that they had gotten similar calls.

While Officer Roder’s actions delighted their large viral audience, the Eau Claire police department was quick to point out that regular citizens should not try the same methods at home. Rather, they should turn to the IRS website, which advises victims on what to do if they encounter similar scammers.

According to the agency, anyone who receives a call should:

“-Do not give out any information. Hang up immediately.

-Contact TIGTA to report the call. Use their “IRS Impersonation Scam Reporting” web page. You can also call 800-366-4484. Report it to the Federal Trade Commission.

-Use the “FTC Complaint Assistant” on FTC.gov. Please add “IRS Telephone Scam” in the notes.”

Hopefully, this story will serve as an important reminder about how to protect yourself from these scammers.