Published: September 13, 2008 12:05 am      

New Creek man latest victim of Internet check cashing scam

NEW CREEK, W.Va. — A New Creek man who advertised an item for sale on an Internet classified site almost fell victim to yet another international scam.

Cecil Miller of state Route 972 said he advertised an item for sale on Your4State.com, a Web site operated out of Hagerstown, Md.

After being contacted by what he thought was a buyer for the item, he received a check in the mail for $2,000 — $1,500 more than he had asked for the item he was selling.

“I didn’t really think anything about it,” he said, adding that the “buyer” asked him to deposit the check, keep the $500 plus $30 “for your patience,” and wire the remainder of the money to an address in Washington, D.C.

“He said he was from out of state and had other items he wanted to purchase,” Miller said.

Miller deposited the check in his bank account, but within a week was contacted by a representative of his bank who informed him the check was bogus.

“I called the bank listed on the check, and they also told me it wasn’t any good,” he said.

Luckily, most of the $2,000 was still in Miller’s account. Had he spent the money, he would have been responsible for repaying the bank, according to Sgt. J.M. Droppleman of the West Virginia State Police.

“These types of scams have been going on for some time,” Droppleman said, noting that most of the correspondence seems to be originating from Nigeria and Canada.

Calling the scammers “well organized,” Droppleman said they “do a pretty good job of counterfeiting these checks.”

“Please do not cash the check,” he said. “You will be responsible for the money.”

Although the e-mail received by Miller listed a Washington, D.C., address, Droppleman suspects it, too, originated out of the country.

“If it originates in this country, I can take care of it. But if it’s from Nigeria or Canada, I refer them to the FBI,” he said.

That’s when it really gets complicated, however, since foreign governments tend not to cooperate with the investigations.

“The Nigerian government pretty much thumbs their nose at us,” Droppleman said.

He advises anyone who receives a check for an excessive amount to be suspicious of the transaction and contact the bank from which the check was supposedly issued.

A “scam alert” that has since been placed on the classified section of Your4State.com directs those who think they may have been scammed to report the incident to the National Consumers League at 800-876-7060 or to visit www.fraud.org on the Web.

Contact Liz Beavers at lbeavers@times-news.com.