SOLON, Ohio — A low-tech scam is making a comeback in the digital age.
Police in Euclid, Mansfield and Solon are warning residents about check washing. Thieves steal paper checks from the mail and use chemicals like bleach to erase the ink. This allows them to rewrite the payee and payment amount.
Lt. Bill Vajdich of the Solon Police Department told Good Morning Cleveland anchor Mike Brookbank that criminals are returning to this method because it still works.
"People are being successful in passing counterfeit checks," said Vajdich. "If there’s money to be made in it, criminals are going to do it."
Victims of check washing don't realize the wrong amount of money was deducted right away because checks can take days or weeks to clear.
Vajdich urges residents to regularly check their bank account balances and monthly statements, making sure outgoing checks match the correct amounts and recipients.
If you spot unusual activity with your account, contact your bank immediately and file a police report.
To prevent check washing, use electronic payments whenever possible. If you have to write a check, use a pen with black, pigment-based gel ink that's resistant to chemicals.
The U.S. Postal Service recommends mailing checks at a post office rather than using a public or personal mailbox.
Vajdich said recent cases of stolen checks happened at some point between the post office and the final destination.
