Carson City Sheriff’s Office warns against check fraud scams

The Carson City Sheriff’s Office has been receiving reports of check fraud scams related to social media outlets like Facebook and Instagram.

Several reports have been received from social media users who receive friend or follower requests from someone they believe they know. The suspects then sent messages asking for help cashing a check due to not having a bank account or other various excuses.

Fraudulent checks are then sent to the victim who then deposits it into their bank account. The suspects offer to have the victim keep a small portion of the money for their help. The funds are requested to be transferred through money wiring services or through other online methods. The methods used are often untraceable or sent overseas.

Shortly after these transactions take place, the victims are notified by their banks that the checks were returned unpayable leaving the victim financially responsible for the loss by their banking institution.

Be careful when communicating through social media outlets. Not everyone on the internet is who they claim to be. Never cash or deposit checks on someone else’s behalf. Typically, these types of crimes are very difficult to trace leaving the victim responsible to cover the financial loss.

Anyone who has discovered they are a victim of these types of scams are encouraged to report these incidents to the FBI Internet Crime Reporting Center at ic3.gov.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Carson City Sheriff’s Office, Dispatch (775) 887-2008, Investigation Division, Detective Kevin Murry (775) 283-7853, Sgt. Craig Lowe (775) 283-7815, Lt. Daniel Gonzales at (775) 283-7850, or Secret Witness (775) 322-4900.