Updated at 2:42 p.m., Saturday, November 10, 2007
Warning issued about travelers check scam in Hawaii
Advertiser Staff
CrimeStoppers and the Honolulu Police Department have issued a public alert about an Internet scam involving forged travelers checks and money orders.Since August, there have been seven forgery cases where people have responded to Internet requests to cash American Express travelers checks or Wal-Mart money orders. In exchange for their assistance, they were supposed to keep a percentage of the money cashed. Instead these seven individuals were arrested for forgery.
In one case, a female responded to an ad for a business opportunity and was sent three $500 American Express travelers checks. Her husband tried cashing the checks at a supermarket and was arrested for forgery. If the checks had been accepted, he was to keep 10 percent of the total amount cashed and mail the balance to the originator.
People may believe that opportunities like this are risk-free because they do not require any money up front. However, the risk comes when an individual who tries to cash a forged check gets arrested for forgery.
To find out if a check is a counterfeit, visit the American Express Web site at www.americanexpress.com.
