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Alert 2006-64 | November 14, 2006
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Chief Executive Officers of All National Banks; All State Banking Authorities; Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; Chairman, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; Director, Office of Thrift Supervision; Conference of State Bank Supervisors; Deputy Comptrollers (districts); Assistant Deputy Comptrollers; District Counsel; and All Examining Personnel
The above-named bank has reported that counterfeit cashier’s checks issued in the bank’s name and using a correct routing number of 043403224 are being presented for payment nationwide in connection with overpayment and lottery schemes.
Counterfeit items may be identified by the following traits: The words “CASHIER’S CHECK” are located in the top-center portion of the checks with the bank name and address printed in the top-left corner. Note that the street name Warwood is misspelled as Wardwood. A memo line is located in the lower-left portion of the checks, which lack all decorative borders as well as the bank logo. The checks contain the following statement in the top border of the item: “This document has a colored background and microprinting. The reverse side includes an artificial watermark.”
Items presented to date have been made payable in varying amounts up to $4,000, contain 5-digit serial numbers, and include the word “PAYMENT” in the memo line.
Victims of the overpayment scheme have received these checks via Federal Express as payment for merchandise they had personally advertised. The checks are made payable for amounts greater than the sale price of the items being purchased, and the scammers request the victims to deposit the checks and immediately wire the excess funds to a third party.
Victims of the lottery scheme have received the counterfeit items via US Postal Service. Correspondence accompanying the checks may contain the letterhead of “BCL Corporation, 31 East Seymour Blvd, Camloups, BC V2C 1E2, Tel: 1-647-833-8307; Fax: 1-416-848-9526” and contain a signature of David Williams, Promotions Manager. Recipients are informed of their winning status and are requested to keep their winnings confidential. The letter indicates that the enclosed check is to be used to pay all applicable taxes; however, the check should not be negotiated until the recipient has contacted the claim agent for further instruction.
For additional information and guidance and to verify the authenticity of Progressive Bank, N.A.’s cashier’s checks, please contact Patti Rose, Bookkeeping Supervisor, 1701 Warwood Avenue, PO Box 6671, Wheeling, WV 26003, by telephone at (304) 277-1100, by fax at (304) 277-2001, or via email at [prose@progbank.com].
Additional information concerning this matter that you believe should be brought to the attention of the OCC may be forwarded to:
Email: occalertresponses@occ.treas.gov Mail: Office of the Comptroller of the Currency Special Supervision Division, MS 6-4 250 E Street, SW, Washington, DC 20219 Fax: (202) 874-5214 Internet: https://www.occ.gov
For additional information regarding other types of financial fraud, please visit the OCC's anti-fraud resource page.
/signed/
Richard C. Stearns Director for Enforcement & Compliance
