A gentleman in Farmington Hills, Michigan recently lost nearly $4,000 as part of a phone scam.

Scammers are always looking for potential, unsuspecting victims. A gentleman in Farmington Hills, Michigan recently lost nearly $4,000 as part of a phone scam.

The male was contacted twice. On January 9th, the first call came in. The person on the other end of the phone claimed to be from the IRS and demanded payment from the victim.

In total, the scammer demanded that $3,854 be paid in the form of prepaid money cards. The caller even threatened to charge the man with crimes if the payment was not received.

Confused, but believing the call was legit, he complied. Shortly thereafter, the same man received another call.

This time, the scammer claimed to be the local sheriff, Michael Bouchard and informed the victim that he owed a little over $4,500. Although the caller ID was consistent with the Sheriff’s Office number, the man felt something wasn’t right and contacted law enforcement after hanging up. That proved to be a smart decision.

The victim was informed he did not owe any money. On the downside, he also learned that he had been swindled out of over $3,800 from the first call.

Local police are now urging residents to be on high alert and report all suspicious calls demanding money.