Thurston County Sheriff's Office is warning residents to watch out for a fraudulent mailer that has been reported in the area.
The tri-fold mailers feature an official-looking letterhead and format, but recurring use of the phrase "The Thurston" throughout the letter presents a major red flag, says Lt. Ray Brady.
A seal featuring an eagle appears in the letter's upper left-hand corner, with letterhead that marks it as sent by the "Tax Processing Unit" of an "Internal Processing Service." The outside of the mailer falsely warns that there's been a violation "punishable by fine or imprisonment."
"The Thurston has attempted to collect the overdue above debt which has not been paid," the mailer reads, before listing a phone number the recipient "must call" to resolve the issue. The letter threatens that "The Thurston" will seize property for nonpayment of taxes, penalities, "and interest due to the State."
One of the mailers was turned in at the Thurston County Treasurer's Office, Brady told The Olympian.
While there are errors and red flags in the document that might cause someone to question who could possibly fall for it, Brady says the format and official look of the mailer is unique and "there are certainly people who are more susceptible to that type of thing."
And even if someone calls the phone number provided to sleuth out what's going on, he said people on the other end of these scams can be "pretty convincing" and may resort to threats.
Anyone who receives this fraudulent mailer shouldn't respond to it and should throw it away, Brady said. There's no need to file a report after receiving one, he said.
