The bogus e-mail had an attached form that asked for the woman’s debit card PIN number and other personal information, Vancouver Police Department spokeswoman Kim Kapp said Wednesday.

“It’s 100 percent scam,” an IRS official confirmed. “We do not initiate contacts by e-mail.”

The woman who received the e-mail didn’t give up her personal information, Kapp said.

Officials say scam artists are trying to take advantage of incoming economic stimulus rebates and refunds.

“It’s tax season, refunds are coming in and people are excited about that,” Kapp said.

Asked whether she’d heard of recent thefts of tax refund checks from local residents’ mailboxes, Kapp said no.

But she offered some tips to avoid that problem:

• Folks should check their mailboxes as soon as mail is delivered, and should arrange to have their mail picked up daily when on vacation.
• It’s safer to ask the IRS to deposit your refund directly into your account electronically.

Police officers ticket 31 seat-belt violators

In the start of a two-week crackdown on motorists and passengers who don’t wear seat belts at night, officers with the Vancouver Police Department’s Traffic Unit pulled over 52 vehicles on Monday.

As a result, officers issued 31 tickets for seat-belt violations, which can bring a $124 fine.

Another 15 drivers were warned to use seat belts, according to a police bulletin.

In the process, officers issued 6 tickets for other violations and made two misdemeanor arrests.

More crackdowns are in the works during the next two weeks, police said.

The Click It or Ticket campaign is paid for by the Washington Traffic Safety Commission. The Washington State Patrol and Clark County Sheriff’s Office also are participating.

The operations are taking place after 7 p.m. because the traffic-death rate is much higher at night, officials said.

Body of third fisherman found

The bodies of all three Yakama tribal fishermen reported missing in the Columbia River after their boat capsized May 7 have now been found.

Tribal Chairman Ralph Sampson Jr. said Tuesday the bodies of Rommel Strom and Gailen Espirito were found just west of the mouth of the Wind River, near Carson.

Searchers recovered the body of James Peter Jr. in the same area on Sunday.

Yakama Nation police, relatives of the fishermen and Skamania County officials had searched for their bodies.

More details about body found in river released

Cowlitz County officials, unable to identify a woman whose body was found in the Columbia River on Sunday, have released more details in hopes of learning who she was:

• She was white, between the ages of 40 and 50, 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighed about 155 pounds, according to a bulletin from the Cowlitz County Sheriff’s Office.
• Her eyes were green and she wore clear contact lenses. Her medium-length hair was brown or auburn, and she had a gold crown on a lower right molar. Two upper left molars were missing.
• Both of her ears had double piercings, and a gold colored hoop earring was found in her left ear. She had a white-metal chain necklace with a white-metal heart and a clear-glass stone.
• She had surgical scars on her abdomen and the inside of her right knee, and short unpolished fingernails.
• She wore a lavender blouse, Rider-brand denim shorts and beige underwear. She had no tattoos and wore no shoes.

Those with information are asked to call sheriff’s Detective Sgt. Joe Reiss at 360-577-3092; or Crimestoppers at 360-577-1206.

John Branton covers crime and law enforcement for The Columbian. He can be reached at 360-735-4513 or john.branton@columbian.com.