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'Cahier's Check' Typo Sinks Fraud Scam

Thief ordered phones to FBI office, but agents were waiting

By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff

Posted May 9, 2009 3:09 PM CDT
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(Newser) – A Tennessee man is being held on two counts of forgery in a scheme that included fake cashier’s checks spelled “cahier’s” and the delivery of merchandise to an FBI office, the Monroe News Star reports. The Monroe FBI received a package of refurbished cell phones and a call from a company that sells them, saying the order was made by a man known to pass phony checks.

When a second cell phone delivery came, Clifton C. Wright, 44, of Memphis, Tenn., arrived in the FBI building parking lot and intercepted the package to pay with a forged check. The FBI stepped in and held the man until local detectives arrived. Wright is also being held as a fugitive from similar charges in Georgia. When arrested was also holding yet another “cahier’s check"—immediate proof that the Chase check was counterfeit.

The FBI building in Chicago.
The FBI building in Chicago.   (AP Photo)
Former presidential hopeful, Rep. Tom Tancredo signs a check last year.
Former presidential hopeful, Rep. Tom Tancredo signs a check last year.   (AP Photo)
A cashier's check.
A cashier's check.   (Shutterstock)
An iPhone and a Blackberry Curve.
An iPhone and a Blackberry Curve.   (AP Photo)
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COMMENTS
Showing 2 of 2 comments
northeast
May 10, 2009 3:02 AM CDT
Not that we would ever accuse the great state of Tennessee of having less-than-stellar spelling abilities....
justme
May 9, 2009 11:54 AM CDT
Aren't we lucky that so many criminals are also stupid. Couldn;t survive too many Madoffs.

 
FBI • Tennessee • smartphones • check fraud • typographical error • stolen merchandise

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