It’s not Tom Hanks or Leonardo DiCaprio who star in this local story of similar situation to the movie, “Catch Me If you Can” based on a real life story of fraud, deceit and crime. And, luckily, it didn’t take years to catch these suspects!
On Thursday, October 22 around 4:00 p.m. Antwerp Police Captain Victoria Clemens received a call warning that there may be people at Antwerp Exchange Bank in Antwerp trying to cash fraudulent checks. She called Chief George Clemens, whose shift just finished, and let him know. Quick thinking, Victoria then called the Paulding Sheriff’s office for backup.
Running out the door, and jumping in the police cruiser, slamming the door, she drove toward the bank with only the knowledge that they were leaving.
She tracked down the suspect vehicle as it approached North Main Street and turned on the police lights. The rented Chrysler 300m vehicle pulled over as if the occupants were to dine at Subway. They were caught.
Arriving at the vehicle door, Officer Clemens knew immediately there was a problem as the scent of marijuana filled the air. The door opened and checks were sticking out from under the driver seat.
Sheriff units arrived with the K-9 unit, followed quickly by the two Ohio State Patrol Intelligence Units dressed in military garb.
Four suspects were removed and searched, while the vehicle was inspected from inside out with fake ID’s made up along with over $80,000 in fraudulent paychecks, containers with remnants of illegal substances, and much more. When removing the floor carpet the fake checks were found even on the floor boards.
At first the suspects were claiming they were being targeted because of their color, but quickly they realized there was no good excuse for all the illegal activity that was happening. Would they have gotten away with it if they were white? Clemens said he didn’t know, “They were able to get State ID’s from the fraudulent checks, and ID badges they had made at a photo center pharmacy.” With two forms of ID needed to get a state ID, it’s pretty easy to defraud the system. The receipts they had showed what they intended to do.
One way the banks help to ensure financial integrity is by setting up certain policies. AEB’s President Ron Eschbach stated, “We would not cash the check unless the customer had an account at our bank or if it was drawn from a customer account at the bank.” Safety verifications such as this, especially in cashing large amounts, helps to ensure that everyone’s money is secure in Antwerp.
After investigation, it appears this was the fifth bank for the day this group of people attempted to cash checks at starting in Fort Wayne, then Harlan and on to Antwerp. It was the Antwerp Exchange Bank Loan Office in Harlan that realized this was very odd because they do not cash checks at that location. The other banks didn’t cash the checks because of questions that were raised each time, including the real ID’s that had just been made that day, but Instead of reporting attempts at iAB of defrauding financial institutions to authorities, they only warned other banks in the area. AEB notified police and stopped the criminals dead in their tracks.
It is with swift action by the Antwerp Police Department, Paulding County Sheriff and the Ohio State Patrol that stopped this criminal activity. “The help we get now from the Sheriff’s office is incredible.” George Clemens continued, “They are here much faster when we need them and much better support than we’ve had in years past now with Sheriff Landers.”
“This could be part of a larger network of fraud out of Detroit,” noted Chief Clemens. It appeared that someone was directing them. There were Payne addresses on the checks and IDs. He said charges have been filed against the four suspects but more could come as the investigations deepens.
The Secret Service is working on their own investigation as they have been brought in on the case.
Instances like this bring back memories of the robberies of the GenFed in Antwerp last year. It’s good to know crime is getting much harder to get away with in Paulding County.
Cheers go to our local authorities for keeping the area safe!
