What happens when your bank happens to clear some fake check under your name?

Question

So my mom was looking at her bank account and she saw these checks that weren't written by her. She finds out one of her ex employee's so happens to have a few checks of hers and has taken thousands. I was looking at her account, and there seems to be double numbers of checks. One check is actually written to the girl and the others are written to other people but all have the same FAKE signature. It's not my mom's at all. So this girl has been making fake checks and has her accomplices help her withdraw this sum of money. What do I do in this case? At first, it was just a case of stealing checks, or so we thought. Now we go through our old check records and find double numbers. Now its a bit different. I'm unsure about this. Can anyone help?

Update:

Let me also include by "double numbers" I mean that there is already that certain check number and then we printed out images of the check cleared that wasn't written by us with the same number. Ex. CHECK 2345 is in our check records written by us and a printed check also with 2345 thats a fake.

Terry G · Accepted Answer

Contact your local district attorney...they will audit your account, then bring charges against the guilty party...the end result will likely be that he/she will have to make restitution, but that may take a while!  Since it is not a mistake of the bank, but rather the result of theft of checks, or counterfeit checks,  the bank is off the hook!

john m · Answer

The Bank does have a responsibility to only pay on a genuine signature !   Your mother needs to go to her bank with the forged checks and sign an Affidavit Of Forged Signature on each forged check.  Her bank will return the affidavits and checks to the bank(s) that accepted them and will get the money back for her.

The Bank of first deposit ultimately takes the loss on each item and is the party that can proceed with law suits and / or criminal prosecution.   If you proceed criminally,  the checks will become evidence and you wont get them back to be returned for refund.

It sounds as though the ex employee fraudulently obtained a duplicate order of checks.  Therefore, this account should be closed and an account with a new account number should be opened.

RetiredDebtFree · Answer

Your mom needs to make copies of all the real and fake checks that have the same numbers. Then she needs to file a police report immediately. As soon as she does that she should call the district attorney's office and have a talk with them about the issue. This is a criminal offense. Bank fraud. Forgery. Very serious.

Anonymous · Answer

this is fraud and should be reported to your local police or the fraud squad as a priority.

Close your cheque account and ask the bank to cancel all outstanding cheques.

 Open a new account and re- issue new cheques to  the genuine debts you have.

The police will conduct an investigation in conjunction with the bank and the bank will be bound to repay you if the Police believe that it is fraud.

Be aware that this could take a while.

I believe that in the US Cheque fraud is a Federal offence as the banks cross into several jurisdictions which makes them come under federal as well as state law, hence the FBI could be involved also.

If that is the case you need to have all your facts . your accounts up to date , all your bank history and all your financial records, including tax liabilities squared away.

Be in no doubt that initially you or your mum will be considered suspects, (that is normal procedure), initially until you can prove to them satisfactorily that you are victims.

The only way you can do that is with solid financial and  accounting records.

What happens when your bank happens to clear some fake check under your name?

4 Answers