Mail Check Theft in Lakewood Ranch: Protect Your Money

0:00On this March 5th in Tampa Bay, here's what is making headlines. Thieves in the Lakewood Ranch Area, Florida, are targeting checks sent through the mail using a scheme called checkwashing to steal money from. Residents bank accounts. These criminals intercept the checks. Erase the original details with chemicals, or rewrite them for larger amounts or different payees. One victim lost access to about $8,000 before his bank caught it. Earlier this year, local resident John Lucker mailed a check and got a surprise call from his bank just days later. They asked about a payment to someone he'd never heard of, revealing the theft. He quickly reported it and learned from investigators that this has hit many others hard. Residents like Lucker are shaken, with trust in the mail system broken. He knows at least six people personally affected in the neighborhood, and folks are switching to electronic payments whenever possible to avoid the hassle. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service has an investigator on the case, confirming it's

1:01not isolated, hundreds of reports have come in. Meanwhile, the Manatee County Sheriff's Office is looking into multiple fraud cases across the area. To stay safe, experts urge using online transfers over mailing checks. If you must mail one, hand it directly to your carrier, or drop it inside a post office before dark, and report any suspicious activity around blue.