Framingham Police Investigating Theft of $10,000

[broadstreet zone=”52386″]

FRAMINGHAM _ Framingham Police are investigating a fraudulent check that was cashed for $10,000, said Framingham Police spokesperson Lt. Rachel Mickens.

The larceny was reported by a Gates Street resident on Monday evening, March 27.

Framingham Police have no suspects at this time.

Below are some tips from the Federal Trade Commission on fraudulent check scams:

By law, banks have to make deposited funds available quickly, usually within two days. When the funds are made available in your account, the bank may say the check has “cleared,” but that doesn’t mean it’s a good check. Fake checks can take weeks to be discovered and untangled. By that time, the scammer has any money you sent, and you’re stuck paying the money back to the bank.

Your best bet: Don’t rely on money from a check unless you know and trust the person you’re dealing with.

[broadstreet zone=”59947″]

How To Avoid a Fake Check Scam

• Never use money from a check to send gift cards, money orders, cryptocurrency, or to wire money to anyone who asks you to. Many scammers demand that you buy gift cards and send them the PIN numbers, buy cryptocurrency and transfer it to them, or send money through wire transfer services like Western Union or MoneyGram. Once you do, it’s like you’ve given them cash. It’s almost impossible to get it back.
• Toss offers that ask you to pay for a prize. If it’s free, you shouldn’t have to pay to get it. Only scammers will ask you to pay to collect a “free” prize.
• Don’t accept a check for more than the selling price. You can bet it’s a scam.

[broadstreet zone=”59945″]

What To Do If You Sent Money to a Scammer

Here are ways to try to get your money back, depending on how you paid a scammer.

• Gift card. Gift cards are for gifts, not payments. Anyone who demands payment by gift card is always a scammer. If you paid a scammer with a gift card, tell the company that issued the card right away. When you contact the company, tell them the gift card was used in a scam. Ask them if they can refund your money. If you act quickly enough, the company might be able to get your money back. Also, tell the store where you bought the gift card as soon as possible.

Here is a list of gift cards that scammers often use — with information to help report a scam. If the card you used is not on this list, you might find the gift card company’s contact information on the card itself. Otherwise, do some research online.

[broadstreet zone=”59946″]

• Wire transfer. If you wired money to a scammer, call the wire transfer company immediately to report the fraud and file a complaint. Reach the complaint department of MoneyGram at 1-800-MONEYGRAM (1-800-666-3947) or Western Union at 1-800-325-6000. Ask for the money transfer to be reversed. It’s unlikely to happen, but it’s important to ask.

• Money order. If you paid a scammer with a money order, contact the company that issued the money order right away to see if you can stop payment. Also, try to stop delivery of the money order: if you sent it by U.S. mail, contact the U.S. Postal Inspection Service at 877-876-2455. Otherwise, contact whatever delivery service you used as soon as possible. 

• Cryptocurrency. If you paid with cryptocurrency, contact the company you used to send the money and tell them it was a fraudulent transaction. Ask to have the transaction reversed, if possible.

[broadstreet zone=”59984″]