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Scam.. or not? I got a real check for $5000

What will happen?

  • Jail time, this fool is going down FOW SHOW.

    Votes: 4 5.1%

  • He gets a $5,000 check from karma!

    Votes: 9 11.5%

  • OP murdered in alley by angry Vietnamese man: accidentally sent life savings to college student

    Votes: 16 20.5%

  • Check is fraudulent and the OP has to pay bank fees.

    Votes: 27 34.6%

  • Y'all got punk'd.

    Votes: 22 28.2%
  • Total voters
    78
  • Poll closed .
#41
bburk said:
somebody's gotta pay... if that check isn't legit, where's the $5k come from? the bank, that's who. And they are going to want their money back.
Click to expand...

As threadstarter said, he's going to wait and see what happens. It's not like he went to the corner store and cashed it. It the money appears in the account then it was drawn on an account with funds in it. They don't do 'deposit with cash back' on a $5000 check.
 
#42
ibanezcollector said:
if he knew it was a scam, and still insisted on trying to get the cash then they would. Plain and simple.

The original poster is trying to get something for nothing and illegally as well, even going as far as opening a new checking account to try it.. That was a honest accident like you describe above, he went out and knew before hand its possible for it to be a scam yet went thru with it, in hopes of getting the money. thats fraud.
Click to expand...

And, this thread, which any lawyer worth his salt *will* find, is proof that he did so with premeditation.

Screwed. Just plain screwed.
 
#43
he's not going to wind up in jail. I think that's absurd. if the check winds up being bogus, then that's what it is. the bank wouldn't be dishing out any cash, where's the loss?

if we were responsible for bad checks we deposited, I think we'd all be in jail. worst that happens is you have to pay a fee for a bounced check and they'll tell you that check was no good.

and on the 1% chance that i'm wrong, please find some documentation via the internet that says it's a crime to deposit a bad check. i'm quite certain it isn't - but I'll eat hay if ya can prove I'm a horse. :)

can't wait to see how this turns out.
 
#45
The check can look real and even me made from the same paper that checks are made from and it can even be authentic enough to fool a bank until later when it is found out that it is indeed a phony check and the person who will be paying bank penalties as well as lawyer fees will be you whether the bank cashed it our not and that's because once it is known that the check is not legit the bank and law enforcemnt authorites have no clue that you are not in on the scam,The best thing to do is not cash it but report it to the National Fraud Information Center/Internet Fraud Watch, a service of the nonprofit National Consumers League, at www.fraud.org or (800) 876-7060. That information will be transmitted to the appropriate law enforcement agencies.
 
#49
Joe Nerve said:
he's not going to wind up in jail. I think that's absurd. if the check winds up being bogus, then that's what it is. the bank wouldn't be dishing out any cash, where's the loss?

if we were responsible for bad checks we deposited, I think we'd all be in jail. worst that happens is you have to pay a fee for a bounced check and they'll tell you that check was no good.

and on the 1% chance that i'm wrong, please find some documentation via the internet that says it's a crime to deposit a bad check. i'm quite certain it isn't - but I'll eat hay if ya can prove I'm a horse. :)

can't wait to see how this turns out.
Click to expand...


Bad (Bounced) Check != Fraudulent Check

'!=' means 'does not equal' for non-nerds.

edit: And since you asked:
Invalid Link Removed
(temporarily, as I said)
 
#52
Joe Nerve said:
he's not going to wind up in jail. I think that's absurd. if the check winds up being bogus, then that's what it is. the bank wouldn't be dishing out any cash, where's the loss?

if we were responsible for bad checks we deposited, I think we'd all be in jail. worst that happens is you have to pay a fee for a bounced check and they'll tell you that check was no good.

and on the 1% chance that i'm wrong, please find some documentation via the internet that says it's a crime to deposit a bad check. i'm quite certain it isn't - but I'll eat hay if ya can prove I'm a horse. :)

can't wait to see how this turns out.
Click to expand...

It IS a crime to knowingly deposit a bad check. That's basically the definition of fraud.

according to http://www.ckfraud.org/penalties.html the penalty for check fraud in IN is:
Up to $5,000 fine or up to one year in jail, or both.
Click to expand...
And here is their definiton of the guilty party:

The guilty party of a fraudulent check is usually the person who signed the check, but it could also be the person who fraudulently passed it on, or even a third party who endorsed and passed the check on to another.
Click to expand...
and here is a fairly reasonable sounding legal definition of fraud:

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

Draw your own conclusions as to the possibility of legal snafus...
 
#53
ibanezcollector said:
Jauqo its to late he tryed to cash it by opening a new bank accout to see what happens
Click to expand...

None of that matters because if the bank thinks it's legit they will let him open a new account but once it becomes known that it is a fake check the OP will be in trouble and out of more than what the check was worth.
 
#55
Johathan does not know the check is bad. For all he knows the check is real, so no fraud is being committed. If the check is fake, it will go to a bank to be paid and there will be no such bank and not be paid. He'll get a letter with the check in the mail stating it was not paid. No harm done. He did not bounce the check, whoever wrote the check did.

If the check is real and made out to the wrong person, it will be paid and it will be up to the payer to audit their books and find the mistake. Not sure what happens there but I am still not sure a law is being broken.

However, if Jonathon isn't kidding us there is something very scary going on here.
 
#56
If the check is fake, it will go to a bank to be paid and there will be no such bank and not be paid. He'll get a letter with the check in the mail stating it was not paid. No harm done. He did not bounce the check, whoever wrote the check did.
Click to expand...

I doubt that a bank would just send back a fraudulent(warning: potential outcome, not saying it IS fraulent) check and say: 'Oh, sorry, your fraudulent check is no good'. An investigation would most likely have to be done. Although he didn't MAKE the check and put his own name on it to scam the bank, THEY DON'T KNOW THAT. It isn't just a check bouncing because of insufficient funds (if it is a scam).

It's just an icky situation and I hope he's kidding. If not, I hope he learns his lesson and doesn't get screwed by it.
 
#57
wmcjhi said:
I doubt that a bank would just send back a fradulent(warning: potential outcome, not saying it IS fraulent) check and say: 'Oh, sorry, your fraudulent check is no good'. An investigation would most likely have to be done. Although he didn't MAKE the check and put his own name on it to scam the bank, THEY DON'T KNOW THAT. It isn't just a check bouncing because of insufficient funds (if it is a scam).

It's just an icky situation and I hope he's kidding. If not, I hope he learns his lesson and doesn't get screwed by it.
Click to expand...

+1, plus don't forget that if it IS a scam then there is a piece we are missing. How do the scammers get their piece? Usually scams like this work out where the scammer gets the money and the scamee gets saddled with the responsibility (legal and financial).

I hope he keeps this thread updated, should be exciting.
 
#58
Yea, I've been trying to work out in my head how they get their bit. I bet there's some goofy stuff, but I think they're trying to use the check to get the info on the account to which the check went, then take that money and any other money that's there. The check was never THEIR money in the first place, so the least they make is the amount of the check.

By the time the bank realizes what's going on, money's gone and the scamee is left to deal with the consequences.

I don't even know how THAT would work, but it's the only thing that makes sense.
 
#60
wmcjhi said:
Yea, I've been trying to work out in my head how they get their bit. I bet there's some goofy stuff, but I think they're trying to use the check to get the info on the account to which the check went, then take that money and any other money that's there. The check was never THEIR money in the first place, so the least they make is the amount of the check.

By the time the bank realizes what's going on, money's gone and the scamee is left to deal with the consequences.

I don't even know how THAT would work, but it's the only thing that makes sense.
Click to expand...

that makes sense.. Sorta :p
 

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