Jim Hawkins was at home in Athens Thursday watching television and minding his own business when he received a call from someone claiming to be an Internal Revenue Service employee.

“He told me I wasn’t paying enough taxes and they would be sending the police over there in 5 minutes,” Hawkins said.

The caller asked Hawkins to give him a checking account number or a debit card number to clear up the matter and, presumably, make the police stand down.

Hawkins didn’t bite. Instead, he went to Athens Police Department to report the matter. He said a person there told him APD didn’t investigate possible IRS scams; he would have to call the IRS for that.

Fearing the scammer might manage to con someone else in the areas, Hawkins reported it to The News Courier Friday.

“A call like that might scare an older person and they could lose thousands of dollars,” he said.

The name and number that showed up on Hawkin’s caller ID was OMAKW 1 (509) 740-0276.

Remember, neither the IRS nor the court system will ever ask you to resolve a debt over the telephone. Both conduct such business by mail.