A scam involving counterfeit American Express checks has made its way to the Kosciusko County area.
According to Kosciusko County Sheriff Rocky Goshert, the scam usually begins on the Internet with a request for a person to cash an "American Express Gift Cheque in the United States."Once the document is cashed, the victim is instructed to keep 10 percent of the total amount and wire the remaining 90 percent of the money (U.S. currency) to a different location, which is usually overseas.
Although no cases of the scam have been reported in Kosciusko County, a North Manchester resident did fall victim to it. Other residents of Wabash County also have reported the scam.
The counterfeit gift checks have markings and coloring that matches the real documents, but the dollar denomination does not match. American Express does not make gift checks with values higher than $100.
The most recent incident involving this scam happened in Wabash County. The person received a $500 counterfeit "American Express Gift Cheque."
It is virtually impossible to track the suspects back to the originating location such as the United Kingdom, Nigeria and other countries.
Goshert said, "If the situation sounds too good to be true, it probably is."
Anyone who suspects a possible scam should contact the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department at 574-267-5667.
