Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody has issued a Consumer Alert warning Floridians about fraudsters who digitally alter checks, a practice known as check cooking.
Fraudsters take photos of stolen checks and use digital tools to alter critical information, such as the payee’s name and amount, before cashing the forgeries.
Recently, Attorney General Moody’s Cyber Fraud Enforcement Unit assisted law enforcement in investigating a Tampa man who forged checks.
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The fraudster stole over $50,000 from victims and is now facing 30 years in prison.
“Fraudsters are now digitally altering stolen checks to fill their own bank accounts while draining those of the victims—like a Tampa Bay resident who stole more than $50,000 before our Cyber Fraud Enforcement Unit caught up with him. Although scary, staying informed will help Floridians avoid falling victim to digital check manipulation schemes,” said Moody.
The crime begins when a fraudster gains access to legitimate checks, which are often stolen from mailboxes. This gives fraudsters access to checks with authentic watermarks, which banks use for verification.
Fraudsters use stolen check images to change critical details such as the payee’s name, payment amount, and other important information using graphic editing software.
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After the digital alterations are completed, fraudsters create counterfeit checks that closely resemble legitimate ones and use them to withdraw funds from unsuspecting individuals’ accounts.
Attorney General Moody’s CFEU charged Tampa resident Donald Johnson with running a check fraud scheme.
According to the investigation, Johnson stole checks from local businesses’ mailboxes before changing the registered agent names to the defendant’s own.
Johnson then endorsed the checks as if they were intended for him and proceeded to defraud local banks by cashing them. Because Johnson served as the businesses’ registered agent, the check could be cashed and the funds deposited directly.
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