Well at the end of the last blog, we had a check for nearly $500k with no way to cash it. Bank of America insisting it was real. And a client demanding his money.
I did everything I could to delay the "distribution" to my client when Bank of America called and said THEY made a mistake.
The certified check was really drawn from the account on the check.
The certified check was really drawn from from the account holder listed on the check.
The certified check number was really used by that account holder.
BUT.... the certified check they had was drafted for less than $50 and "advised" me not to honor the check. Hmmm.... but you just told me I could honor it...
Well if the scam played it course, I would have deposited the BIG check and "kept" $300k for myself and sent the balance of about $200k to "my client" but when the bank realized the check was fake, I would have been responsible for the $200k that I sent out. Well having caught the scammers red handed, I decided to help the authorities bring these bastards to justice.
FBI said they really didn't handle that type of crime so call the Secret Service.
After weeks of phone tag with Secret Service they never did anything with it.
I called the local district attorney without real success. The Attorney General didn't even feel they could or should do anything...
So we had all the proof, names, email addresses, physical addresses, phone numbers, the checks but no one really wanted to do ANYTHING... just allowed these scammers to find others who were less suspicious than I was ... and they almost succeeded - http://www.law.com/jsp/law/sfb/lawArticleFriendlySFB.jsp?id=1202475502267
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
I Just Won The Lottery!!! Part Two
So... yes, Mike Glaser was right... I immediately called the issuing bank and advised them that I believed the certified check that I received was a forgery. My call was quickly dispatched to the security division of the bank and they asked me to fax over a copy of the check. We faxed it over and quickly got a phone call confirming that the check was in fact a forgery.
Armed with this new information, I called my client and told them the bad news. The client was shocked that the check was fake and insisted that I try to deposit it again. I explained that while I nice thought, I would not even consider that option. I told the client that we should immediately file suit against the deadbeat and collect our money the right way. The client agreed and when I told them I would need about $1,000 to cover the "out-of-pocket" costs, they asked if they could try to get the other side to issue a new check. I wasn't thrilled with the idea but agreed to give them the opportunity to "collect" their own money.
Within 24 hours I received an email from the deadbeat asking about the old check and why I thought it was a forgery. After explaining why, I told them to issue a new check payable to me and Tom Corbett, the Pennsylvania Attorney General under the pretext that all checks of that size are to be run through the Attorney General's Office as a means to protect clients from money hungry attorney who might consider ripping off their clients.
The deadbeats agreed and the next day I got a certified check from Bank of America again for nearly $500,000. And yes, you are right, I was suspicious that this check, although written to Tom Corbett was also a fake.
So I again contacted the issuing bank, Bank of America. I faxed them a copy of the certified check. Bank of America said the check was REAL.... I could deposit it without concern. I insisted the check was fake. Explained what happened with the earlier check and said there was no way this was real. Bank of America insisted the check was real and I should honor it.
As I was on the phone with Bank of America, the client was on another line leaving me a message that they heard I received payment and that they wanted their portion ASAP or else they would report me to the attorney disciplinary board.
I asked Bank of America to send me something in writing - email or fax - saying the check was real and the funds were available. Shortly thereafter I received a fax saying there was plenty of money in the account cover the check therefore I was again asked to honor the check. I still had an uneasy feeling but I now had a real check made payable to the Attorney General of Pennsylvania with no way to deposit it and an angry "client" wanting their money....
Part III is next!!!
Armed with this new information, I called my client and told them the bad news. The client was shocked that the check was fake and insisted that I try to deposit it again. I explained that while I nice thought, I would not even consider that option. I told the client that we should immediately file suit against the deadbeat and collect our money the right way. The client agreed and when I told them I would need about $1,000 to cover the "out-of-pocket" costs, they asked if they could try to get the other side to issue a new check. I wasn't thrilled with the idea but agreed to give them the opportunity to "collect" their own money.
Within 24 hours I received an email from the deadbeat asking about the old check and why I thought it was a forgery. After explaining why, I told them to issue a new check payable to me and Tom Corbett, the Pennsylvania Attorney General under the pretext that all checks of that size are to be run through the Attorney General's Office as a means to protect clients from money hungry attorney who might consider ripping off their clients.
The deadbeats agreed and the next day I got a certified check from Bank of America again for nearly $500,000. And yes, you are right, I was suspicious that this check, although written to Tom Corbett was also a fake.
So I again contacted the issuing bank, Bank of America. I faxed them a copy of the certified check. Bank of America said the check was REAL.... I could deposit it without concern. I insisted the check was fake. Explained what happened with the earlier check and said there was no way this was real. Bank of America insisted the check was real and I should honor it.
As I was on the phone with Bank of America, the client was on another line leaving me a message that they heard I received payment and that they wanted their portion ASAP or else they would report me to the attorney disciplinary board.
I asked Bank of America to send me something in writing - email or fax - saying the check was real and the funds were available. Shortly thereafter I received a fax saying there was plenty of money in the account cover the check therefore I was again asked to honor the check. I still had an uneasy feeling but I now had a real check made payable to the Attorney General of Pennsylvania with no way to deposit it and an angry "client" wanting their money....
Part III is next!!!
Friday, January 7, 2011
I Just Won The Lottery!!!
Ever get an email like that? I got one better... A potential client emailed me from my website asking me if we did debt collection work and requested our fees. I explained that we did and provide our fee structure. The potential client agreed to pay 30% of the debt collected. Feeling there was something amiss, I cautiously and carefully accepted the client. By the way, every bit of my body knew this was a SCAM.
The client provide me with the "supporting documentation" in order to collect the debt. I was somewhat surprised to see that almost $1,000,000 was owed but now I was compelled to see where this was going. In an effort to play this out, I wrote a collection letter to the "defendant." For the first time in my career, my written words alone got someone to agree to pay nearly half a million dollars!
Two days later I received a certified check for $450,000 + dollars made payable to me! I called my client who said take the first $300,000 as the fee and send the rest to us when you can.
The EASIEST $300,000 I EVER made!
Stay tuned for the next part of the story!!!
The client provide me with the "supporting documentation" in order to collect the debt. I was somewhat surprised to see that almost $1,000,000 was owed but now I was compelled to see where this was going. In an effort to play this out, I wrote a collection letter to the "defendant." For the first time in my career, my written words alone got someone to agree to pay nearly half a million dollars!
Two days later I received a certified check for $450,000 + dollars made payable to me! I called my client who said take the first $300,000 as the fee and send the rest to us when you can.
The EASIEST $300,000 I EVER made!
Stay tuned for the next part of the story!!!
Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Resources - Law Offices of Peter J. Russo, P.C.
Resources - Law Offices of Peter J. Russo, P.C.
Our firm is going to try to keep providing you tidbits on regular basis.
The first thing we want to share is a free seminar that we are hosting to help people with New Year's resolutions. It's a Time Management Seminar on January 11th at 4:00 pm at the Radisson Penn Harris in Camp Hill PA. Call our office if your interested in attending - 717-591-1755 ext 103.
Our firm is going to try to keep providing you tidbits on regular basis.
The first thing we want to share is a free seminar that we are hosting to help people with New Year's resolutions. It's a Time Management Seminar on January 11th at 4:00 pm at the Radisson Penn Harris in Camp Hill PA. Call our office if your interested in attending - 717-591-1755 ext 103.
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