Some scammers appear to be making the most of Tax Day by posing as governmental units looking to collect debts allegedly owed to the county or state in letters addressed to Leelanau County residents.
One fraud attempt that was reported to the county sheriff’s office between April 10-11 threatens to impose fines, revoke social security benefits, and suspend licenses if an alleged debt numbering in the thousands of dollars goes unpaid within just a few days of the mark receiving the letter.
Newly hired Leelanau County Executive Assistant Lauren Cypher told the newspaper that these letters are fraudulent and likely attempts to take advantage of taxes being on everyone’s minds with Monday’s filing deadline. Fortunately, no one in Leelanau County has reported losses due to these scams as of Thursday.
Cypher and County Undersheriff James Kiessel recommended that residents who receive letters like this contact the county departments listed in these letters. Two departments that can help verify if someone owes delinquent taxes are the county treasurer’s office and the register of deeds.
“Contact with the local county offices listed within the letter is probably the quickest and simplest way (to verify if these letters are legitimate),” Kiessel wrote in an April 11 social media post. “Do not call the numbers listed on the letters as they will put you in contact with the perpetrators. The same can be said for any electronic communication methods such as links or emails. If you ever question the veracity of any document received in the mail do some research before you act.”
When asked how to determine if a letter of this nature is legitimate, County Treasurer John Gallagher explained such notices on local taxes would inform citizens to contact his office at 231-256-9838, not an 800 number as was the case in two of the scam letters the sheriff’s office shared on Facebook. Additionally, all notices subject to court proceedings would have a docket number that can be searched on the circuit court website.
Gallagher added that the deadline for notice that properties are delinquent on their 2023 properties taxes was back on Feb. 1. He said that taxpayers who receive a fraudulent letter or have questions about their owed local taxes should contact his office.
County Register of Deeds Jennifer Grant was out of the office and unavailable for comment at the time of writing. The register of deeds reported fraud attempts of a different nature to the newspaper earlier this year, in which third parties were attempting to fraudulently sell vacant lots across the county without the knowledge of the property owners.
