Norfolk Police Department Warns Community About Thefts and Apparent ‘Check Washing’ Scheme, Offers Safety Tips

NORFOLK — Chief Timothy Heinz and Norfolk Police Department would like to warn community members about recent thefts and apparent “check washing” schemes reported in the media.

In light of the holiday season, the Department is offering safety tips to help prevent residents from falling victim to similar scams.

Chief Heinz is warning Norfolk residents of instances of theft and reports of check fraud that have been circulating in local media reports. In recent reports, residents are being notified by their banks of potentially fraudulent activity and have received copies of altered checks that they did not make out themselves. 

Altering stolen checks to fraudulently cash them is known as “check washing,” and is a common scheme in which various chemical washes are used to remove ink from checks, creating a blank check that can be filled in.

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service reports that more than $1 billion in counterfeit checks and money orders are recovered each year.

The Norfolk Police Department offers the following tips for preventing check theft and check washing:

• Use black gel pens when filling out checks. Black gel ink can be more difficult to wash off of a check.
• Do not mail checks via your residential mailbox, or any other insecure mailbox. It is recommended that any checks be mailed only in blue Postal Service mailboxes, or that they are delivered by hand inside the Post Office.
• Shred or burn canceled checks. Do not throw checks in the trash.
• Check your bank statements often. Some banks will only reimburse funds lost to fraud if the fraud is reported to the bank within 30 days. 
• Never send cash in the mail.

Anyone who believes they may have had mail stolen or checks fraudulently cashed is encouraged to contact the Norfolk Police Department by calling 508-528-3206.

For more information on protecting yourself against check washing and other scams from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, click here.

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