(Belleville, IL) — Hundreds of families in the Metro East area have fallen victim to a form of identity theft that crops up around this time of year. Scammers are using stolen personal information to file fake income tax returns and then pocketing the refunds. In many cases, people don’t realize their information’s been compromised until they file their taxes and are told by the IRS that a return has already been filed in their name. Police in Metro East have recorded hundreds of scam victims, but the actual number won’t be known until some weeks after tomorrow’s tax filing deadline.