Officials spot property tax mailer scam

State and federal officials have intercepted about 200 checks sent to a Las Vegas post office box in what they describe as a property tax savings mail scam.

In the scheme, an official-looking notice claims homeowners can reduce their taxes through the Property Tax Review Board. The company offers third-party support for a fee of $189.

The mailers have landed in several mailboxes in Nevada, Arizona and also in California, where the two brothers accused of masterminding the scheme face legal action.

Nevada Senior Deputy Attorney General John McGlamery said no one in Nevada has come forward to say they have lost money in the scam.

But the attorney general's office has been working to block the Las Vegas post office box set up for the scam.

"Without any victims, there is only so much we can do," he said.

The office released an alert about the scam in early August, and McGlamery said officials have received several calls from homeowners.

California Attorney General Edmund Brown filed a lawsuit against brothers Michael and Sean McConville in May, according to a news release from the Nevada attorney general's office.

Sean McConville also faces 20 felony counts in California related to the property tax assessment operations.

The brothers had been working out of Glendale, Calif., but California officials halted the operation. McGlamery said authorities in Nevada have identified a person of interest in Las Vegas who might have helped the brothers.

Also, the information included in the letter is based on California law rather than Nevada law. Homeowners in Nevada do not pay taxes based upon market value, as included in the solicitation.

A county assessor can provide help to homeowners with questions about property tax calculations. There is no need to pay a third party $189 for this information, Nevada officials said.

If anyone has questions about the solicitation, McGlamery said they can contact their local county assessor's office or the Nevada Attorney General's Bureau of Consumer Protection at (775) 684-1169. The Clark County assessor's office can be reached at 702-455-3882.