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Somebody keeps forging Boston Medical Center checks and the hospital is getting tired of it

Boston Medical Center yesterday sued a series of as yet unknown "John Does" for repeatedly forging and trying to cash hospital checks - sometimes successfully - over the past couple of years.

In a racketeering and fraud suit against "John Does 1-10" filed in US District Court in Boston, the hospital says it brought the action in the hopes it will help it ID the perps and to make them pay up once they are identified.

The hospital says it filed in federal court in part because it has yet to find any evidence the checks are coming from inside the Commonwealth. Also:

The Defendants have attempted to deposit fraudulent checks at multiple financial institutions throughout the United States. Although BMC has identified several fraudulent checks before funds were dispersed, its efforts to identify the perpetrator(s) of the fraud have thus far been unsuccessful, and counterfeit checks continue to be presented using BMC's bank account information.

BMC, which does not state whether federal officials are conducting a parallel criminal investigation, says at least 30 fake BMC checks, worth a total of more than $130,000, have been presented for payment, both in person and electronically, between May 5, 2020, to Oct. 19, 2022.

Although the Defendants' fraudulent checks contain authentic BMC check numbers, BMC has determined that the checks were counterfeit.

For example, on September 7, 2022, the Defendants attempted to deposit a fraudulent check to Chase Bank in the amount of $4,803.74 with a check number, routing number, and bank account number identical to the information on a legitimate check printed by BMC on August 15, 2022.

Additionally, many of the Defendants' fraudulent checks are printed using what appears to be an authentic BMC check template, or an authentic template used by a BMC vendor.

Defendants made the fraudulent checks payable to individuals with addresses in at least seven states.

For example, on March 24, 2022, Defendants attempted to deposit a counterfeit check in an account at TD Bank made payable to an individual residing in Florida in the amount of $5,000. This check bore a check number, routing number, and bank account number identical to the information printed on a legitimate check printed by BMC on March 17, 2022.

Once the John Does are identified, BMC says it would want treble damages, plus costs and any penalties a court might deem suitable.

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Comments

so it sounds like BMC isn't using Positive Pay, which seems insane to me?

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It’s not clear from the article the degree to which the fraudulent checks went through the system, since in one place it says “attempted to deposit” rather than “deposited”. They may indeed have positive pay. Also, I believe if the check number and amount match a good check, then positive pay might not be of much help, especially if the bad check gets there first.

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...getting a bill from BMC sometime. $1000 “facility fee?!” Just for walking into their buildings? I hope these scammers keep cashing their checks successfully for the next decade. They’re nothing less than folk heroes in my eyes.

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Because as somebody with a family member who has gotten quite a bit of care at BMC over the past few years, well, we've never seen a ludicrous bill like that.

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My bills for services at Bmc (with standard employer sponsored health insurance) are also about twice what they are for regular small clinics because there is both the regular provider fees and a ‘hospital fee’ which I assume is the facility fee this person is talking about. I’ve also been charged a fee for a treatment room simply because my doctor gave me a medication in my appt vs me picking it up later. It happens.

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You sir or madam, are an idiot.

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Great. when the hospital is having hundreds and thousands of dollars siphoned off every year, it has to be made up for somehow. Guess where? Your bill.

Hooray, supporting criminals while the paitents at BMC will pay more in services to make up the difference. *eye roll*

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