I received a very official looking offer in the mail to earn extra money as a "mystery shopper." The company sent a check in the amount of $3,998.21 with a chart indicating $450.00 for me, $100.00 to spend at stores like Walmart, Kmart, Sears, Best Buy and JC Penny. I was to pose as a potential customer, spend the $100 and report as to the quality of service as I made my purchase. Then I was to send by money gram checks to two individuals in the amounts of $1,608.21 and $1,600.00. When I called they told me to deposit the check in my bank account, then in three days withdraw all the money and use it as indicated above. I deposited the check, then had second thoughts. Why would someone send a stranger a check for that amount and trust him or her to follow instructions and not just keep the money? I consulted with my banker daughter and son-in-law, and they too were suspicious. They noted the envelope was postmarked from Canada and said this plus the fact they were avoiding using banks to send out these checks was an indication they were avoiding federal banking laws in the US. Since I had already deposited the check, which the bank said had cleared, my daughter and son-in-law told me not to withdraw the money in three days but to wait seven days and see what happened. On the seventh day, the money disappeared from my account. It had bounced, but however they had arranged it, the fraud was not detected until seven banking days later. If I had done as they instructed, I would have been out almost $4,000 and liable to the bank to cover that amount.
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