Too darn good
The scam is alive and well
By Stacey Wiebe 03/29/2007
Old adages are old adages for a reason.
In the case of one that most of us know all too well — “If it seems too good to be true, it probably is” — a well-used adage can get truer by the minute. Especially when it comes to get-rich-quick schemes.
According to Laura Robinson, a crime prevention officer for the Ventura Police Department, the get-rich-quick scheme is as alive and well as always and, as long as there are people who need money and need it quick, will stay that way.
“Scams can be a field day for bad guys with any intelligence,” said Robinson, who added that many scams tend to be perpetrated in waves. The “wave” pattern is due mostly to the fact that those who create them are busted or believe they’ll soon be busted and lay low until they feel it’s safe enough to start up again.
One fairly common scheme conducted through the United States Postal Service involves scam artists mailing high-dollar, official-looking checks made out to whomever resides at the addresses to which they are sent.
One Ventura woman who approached the Reporter about a check she was sent, and chose to remain anonymous, said she asked her bank about the suspicious check and was told that “ … it was good I hadn’t cashed it, because other people had cashed very similar checks and later had to repay the bank due to insufficient funds.” The check she was sent in February, ostensibly by a couple who live in Florida, was in the amount of $2,900.
Most such scams, Robinson said, include a letter with the check, usually asking — for a number of different reasons — that a portion of the money be sent back to the check’s writer. The scam pays off for the scam artist when the victims send money before realizing they’d cashed a rubber check. Because the Ventura woman’s check was not accompanied by some kind of request for funds, it’s difficult to ascertain what the payoff for a scam artist could be in such a case.
There is a possibility, however, that the check casher’s financial information could somehow become available to the scam artist for a specific time frame after the check is cashed. In any case, those who receive suspicious checks are advised to speak with bank officials before attempting to cash the checks.
“Local police departments are not equipped, trained or have the kind of knowledge needed to deal with complicated scams,” Robinson said, and added that senior citizens and Spanish speakers are often targeted by scam artists.
Seniors are more likely to be at home to speak on the phone to scam artists and they often have financial anxiety. “Sometimes, older people can be a bit more susceptible because they are at the end of their earning years and need to make what they have last.”
Spanish speakers, on the other hand, are susceptible to scam artists who claim to be illegal immigrants and may offer victims portions of winning lottery tickets or checks if those victims are willing to claim the tickets or cash the checks.
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