[wolfiegil]

I was caught up in a check scam and did not know about it, I tried to cash a check at the bank but was stopped and told that the check was stolen. The police were called but I was let go. I was sent a check in the mail by another person and tried to cash it and again was told it was stolen. Mind you I never received any money for any of the checks nothing. I went home and 4 months later was arrested for those charges. I am guessing it went to the states attorney office and he was the one who put the charges on me. I am awaiting to get a appointed attorney due to I can not afford one. I am so scared, I have never been in any trouble in my 48 years until this. I just want to know what can I expect when I go to court.

[ma0641]

Are people just sending you checks? Why were YOU sent the checks?

[excon]

Hello w:

With the limited information you gave us, I ASSUME that you were supposed to send the writer of the check some of the money, and you could keep some...

It's a pretty well known scam, and MOST victims, like yourself, are NOT charged - ESPECIALLY when the check was never cashed...

Or, I'm wrong and you KNEW the remitter..

excon

[wolfiegil]

I did not know at first that the it was a scam. But when the second check arrived and I took it to the bank to cash I asked the teller to make sure that the check was good so that I would not go through what I had went through last time. Anyway I was told the check was not good and I went home. But I just don't understand how they can charge me grand theft or even forgery and arrest me for that

[wolfiegil]

ma0641
I was working for a guy on the internet doing his payroll he was paying me cash until one day he told me to write out a check for my pay. That's how it all got started. Anyway that check the bank said was stollen. The second check he told me that one of his associates would pay me and he sent me a check and it was stollen as well. I usually would think about what I am doing but during this time my daughters husband who is 25 found out he had cancer and they were needing help. All I could think about was making some extra money to help them and my grand chrildren. Yes it was my bad but I was just not thinking

[excon]

I just don't understand how they can charge me grand theft or even forgery and arrest me for that

Hello again, w:

Prosecutors don't charge people based on the law... They do it based on their FEELINGS, or their need to get reelected. I don't know what got up this guys butt, but you need a good criminal attorney... If you can't afford one, they'll appoint one to you for free. Speak ONLY to your attorney. Do NOT speak to the cops...

excon

[wolfiegil]

I am awaiting to be appointed a attorney, I applied for one last Thursday and am just waiting to see who I get. I found out that the this was sent to the states attorney office and he is the one who wanted me arrested on these charges. Do you think this will be bad in court I have never been in any trouble in my life and I'm 48yrs. I just wasn't thinking about what I was doing. I was more on my daughter and her family needing help with funds and trying to help them as much as I could.

[excon]

Do you think this will be bad in court

Hello again, w:

Anytime they're prosecuting you for a FELONY, is a BAD time. But, I don't think you're GUILTY. The law is VERY specific about stuff like this. In criminal matters, in order to be guilty, you have to have had a guilty mind (mens rea). In other words, you have to have INTENDED to commit a crime.. You didn't. In fact, I think you're the VICTIM of a crime instead of the perpetrator.

Don't let your attorney talk you into pleading guilty on some lesser charge BEFORE you talk with us again.

excon

[wolfiegil]

Do you think I will get off this in court or will I be looking for more jail time for this. God I hope not that one time in jail for those 12hrs was enough for me. I never want to see the inside of a jail like that again. I am just scared that when I go to court that they will make a example of me for this.

[excon]

Do you think I will get off of this in court or will i be looking for more jail time for this.

Hello again, w:

Read what I posted above you.. Plus, the prosecutor IS absolutely LOOKING to SCREW you over. That's what prosecutors DO. It's YOUR, and your lawyers job, to DEFEAT him.

excon

[wolfiegil]

So what you are saying is that the attorney might ask me to take a lesser charge and plead guilty for it. I don't want to plead guilty for anything. I never got any money for these checks and I did not steel them they were sent to me and all I did was fill them out to whom ever they want them to go to. And then all of the sudden he quite paying me cash for my work which he did pay me cash until this. I just don't know what to expect, I have never been to court before and am not sure why they charged me like they did.

[excon]

And then all of the sudden he quite paying me cash for my work which he did pay me cash until this.

Hello again, w:

If the "work" you did was to cash checks and send him most of the money, then you DID receive MONEY from this scam. It was a scam from the beginning... I don't know HOW this will turn out.

excon

[Fr_Chuck]

Trying to cash bad checks is a crime, you do not have to actually get the money, had the bank not most likely had those accounts on a watch list, you would have gotten the money.

There is a lot more to this, as to the "business" the payroll you were doing. Are you an accountant ? Did you take a large payment from him and then pay others ? If so, then you would have had government tax accounts set up and so on ( if not most likely that would be violation of other federal laws if it goes that far)

This sounds like a common check fraud scam. How were you paying the other "employees" you were doing payroll for ? How big are the checks

[wolfiegil]

Ok here's what I did for the man he or someone would send me check through UPS and then I would get a stamp with whomevers name on it for the checks. I would receive names and amounts to put on the check and then send them out. Ok he was paying e cash to do this for like three months, then all of the sudden he asked me to make a check out to myself and that was to be my pay. This is when I went to the bank and asked the teller even to make sure the check was good and signed it and handed it over. I was detained then at the bank until the police came and held me there for about 2 hours letting me know that the check was stolen. They then let me go home and from there they came to my home and I gave them everything that I had to do with the check, I even prined names that I had wrote checks for and gave to them. Ok about three weeks later the man that I was writing these checks for emailed me and stated that one of his associates were sending me a check for my money that I had not gotten paid for. A week later I received a check and not thinking about it took it to the bank and again asked the teller to make sure it was good. Again I found out that this check was also stolen, the bank manager told me this and then told me to go home. I was contacted by a investigator and went and talked to him about checks and wrote out my statement on what had happened. He then told me that he would have to turn it over to the states attorney office and that I would hear from them what they are going to do. Well three months later I had a officer come to my door and tell me he had a warrant for my arrest and took me to jail. But you know something he never did read me my rights. Anyway this is were I am now. I never received any money for any of the checks, nor did I know that they were stolen. I have never been in any kind of trouble in my life until this. And believe me I learned a hard lesson, I can say I never thought It would happen to me but it did. I am scared to death, right now not knowing what to expect of what might be coming. I was just not thinking at the time when all of this happened, and by no means would I ever steal from someone like that. I know now after the fact but that doesn't do me any good, exspecial after I been arrested for this. I just want to know what am I looking at when I go to court.

[Fr_Chuck]

Sorry what you did is a crime, I know you don't understand, so you need an attorney seriously. ( well you need one even if you understood)

First receive "cash" did that not ring any bells, and then why was he not just mailing or sending the checks his self.
In this, that is often a sign of illegal money laundering done by drug groups and other criminals like gambling money and so on. So since taking cash for someone and paying others is so unusual, the fact you did not suspect it, is a real issue. But there could be charges for doing this,if they prove the money came from any illegal source.

Next the rest is a common check scam, what they wanted you to do, was cash the check and perhaps a couple more before the checks were found to be a fraud or stolen or fake, and by that time, when the checks return, you owe the bank 1000's.

But just being the victim on the check fraud, is illegal, and trying to cash a forged or stolen check is a crime, esp under these issues, since a normal person would have considered it something illegal because it is such a famous fraud.

Remember how much was your "cut" any real payroll company does it for about 3 percent of the pay,
So assuming you are not a company, not a licensed payroll company that knows how to do taxes and state withholdings it shows a criminal intent.

[Fr_Chuck]

Please get an attorney, the charges you face are going to be very serious. I understand you don't see this, but when you get prison time, is not the time to figure out, just being innocent is enough.

[twinkiedooter]

Your "boss" skated from Federal charges since he sent everything UPS and not the US Mail. But what you did was illegal and you may end up getting some jail time - up to three years in prison depending on the total amount involved. This is quite serious although you feel you were just a pawn to this guy, doesn't matter in the eyes of the judge. Stolen checks mean someone's going to jail. You may or may not have known about the stolen business but that does not matter as you were in possession of the stolen check and that part is what rerally matters.

How much money are we talking about here?

[Fr_Chuck]

Hopefully you have and will provide, ( unless they raided the house first and took it) all of the contracts you had with them of your payroll activities. And of course proving you were in business by having a business license for a payroll service.

But all of the letters they sent, copies of all the addresses you sent money to and all that info.

With that, you may make a deal. But I honestly don't see you walking without some charges. But that is why you keep a local attorney.

And I am also sure that if not W2 employee but 1099, you keep payroll proff of who was paid, to submit to the IRS for tax purposes, if not the IRS may also be knocking at your door soon.

[excon]

Hello again, w:

Here's what wikipedia says about mens rea: Mens rea is Latin for "guilty mind".[1] In criminal law, it is viewed as one of the necessary elements of a crime. The standard common law test of criminal liability is usually expressed in the Latin phrase, actus non facit reum nisi mens sit rea, which means "the act does not make a person guilty unless the mind be also guilty".

Even though you committed the ACTS, I believe you had no INTENT to commit a crime... Therefore, I don't believe you're guilty, and that's how I would plead.

What will happen?? I don't know. Obviously, from your statements and/or other evidence the cops gathered, the prosecutor thinks he can convict you in court. It's your job, and your lawyers, to DEFEAT him...

Didn't I say this before??

excon

[wolfiegil]

I thank each and everyone of you for the information that you have given me. I found out today that I go for my arainment on the 11th of October and I plan on pleading not guilty. I am to understand after that is when I will see a appointed lawyer. I am just hoping things will go well. And to the gentelman who wonders if my home was raided, no it was not, I gave all that I had to the cops when they came to my home for the evidence, they took all I had. And to clear up as far as payroll, what I was saying in that means is I was just putting peoples names that were given to me on these checks and the amounts that were given to me, and stamping them and sending them out. I don't really call that payroll. I don't even know what these people were doing with these checks after they received them. All I know is as I tell my grandson me-me took off her thinking cap is why I tell him to keep his on at all times. This is something that I would never do if I were to really be thinking about it. I just had so much on my mind at the time that I just didn't think of what was going on. What is the old saying It could never happen to me, well yes it could. Again I thank you all, I will keep you up dated on things if you would like and maybe have more questions to ask as this takes place if you all don't mind. Ok just keep your fingers crossed for me and pray. Thanks again guys