IRS Scammers Found Their Match In Dave Holmes, The Former MTV VJ Who's All Over Twitter

Dave Holmes MTV VJ — Dave Holmes (left), pictured here with former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, was an MTV VJ before his Twitter screed against IRS scammers went viral. Getty Images/Theo Wargo

Think twice before you take a call from someone claiming to be from the Internal Revenue Service. With tax season approaching, criminals are increasingly exploiting Americans' trust in an attempt to get them to turn over financial information. Just ask Dave Holmes.

Holmes, the comedian and former MTV VJ, sparked a Twitter firestorm Thursday night when he described his interaction with “the laziest, shoddiest grifters” he'd ever encountered. The story involved his conversation with three con artists impersonating IRS agents, and asking Holmes to deposit $5,300 into their Bank of America account. Holmes was leaving the gym, he said, when he heard a voice mail from someone claiming to be from the IRS with a Maryland cell phone number, but speaking in a foreign accent.

I called back, because I get stupid after a workout, and I thought: THIS MIGHT BE REAL. I should take it easy maybe. Anyway. (3/20)
— Dave Holmes (@DaveHolmes) January 21, 2016

A very stern person answered the phone & spoke very quickly: this is in reference to your audit in 2008. (which happened. I owed zero.) 4/20
— Dave Holmes (@DaveHolmes) January 21, 2016

He continued: there is a warrant for your arrest. You face five years in federal prison. We have cancelled your driver's license. (5/20)
— Dave Holmes (@DaveHolmes) January 21, 2016

You owe $5273. We sent a letter to your home in October & nobody was there to receive it. But we left a slip and you never called back. 6/20
— Dave Holmes (@DaveHolmes) January 21, 2016

THIS TELLS US YOU ARE TRYING TO RUN AWAY. ARE YOU ABLE TO PAY THIS MONEY IN FULL TODAY? 7/20
— Dave Holmes (@DaveHolmes) January 21, 2016

The fraudsters hung up on Holmes, he said, after he said he'd like to call his tax preparer. It was only after he called back in faux tears that they directed him to his bank to withdraw the cash. From there, Holmes says he was directed to a Bank of America branch and given the routing number for an account that belonged to a Jack Milton.

At various points in the call he was connected with “IRS agents” who called themselves Officer Johnson, Agent Debbie and Agent Paul.

We stayed on the line together for that whole five minute drive, me and Officer Johnson. I asked how long he'd been at the IRS. 8 years!
— Dave Holmes (@DaveHolmes) January 21, 2016

I asked what he did before that, and how he likes the IRS gig. He said: "MR HOLMES I AM BUSY DOING YOUR PAPERWORK." I said: Jeez, of course.
— Dave Holmes (@DaveHolmes) January 21, 2016

The call only ended when Holmes, a trained comedy improviser, told Agent Paul he was going to read him the transaction receipt.

It says: this is the worst, sloppiest, saddest attempt at a con I have ever experienced, and you should be ashamed.
— Dave Holmes (@DaveHolmes) January 21, 2016

You are BAD AT GRIFTING, and you should STOP IT.
— Dave Holmes (@DaveHolmes) January 21, 2016

Agent Paul, I swear to God, said: "Please accept my apologies," and hung up the phone.
— Dave Holmes (@DaveHolmes) January 21, 2016

The same type of scam has been more successful for other criminals, the IRS said. Phone scams typically begin months before customers starting filling out their W-2 forms or making appointments at the accountant's office. Since October 2013, an IRS spokesman told TheDailyTimes.com, criminals have taken more than $23 million from at least 4,550 victims.