I sent a similar e-mail to the moderators and Cecil about a month ago – but I can’t wait any longer.
I remember reading a newspaper wire report – years ago, late 80s – about a check scam in the southeastern United States that involved paper checks literally dissolving shortly after being cashed.
I was wondering if anyone else knew of this scam – how exactly it was pulled off and whether the perpetrators were ever caught. Did it have anything to do with Frank Abagnale, Jr.?
I remember this scam! I was a bank teller at the time and remember getting security alerts about checks with an “oily feel” and a “slight scent of banana”. Apparently the checks were written, then treated with a substance which dissolved the check paper completely before it could be processed through the bank.
I never personally knew of such a check to come through our bank or any other bank in the area, but security departments took the reports seriously. I have not heard Abagnale’s name associated with this scam.
I COMPLETELY forgot that there was a banana scent until you mentioned it! Yes, I think this is the same scam.
Okay – any other updates? Last thing I remember in the article was a quick-thinking teller slipped a check that was in the process of dissolving into a ziplock bag for authorities to look over, so I was curious what might have happened next.
This is why banks are anxiously awaiting a package of check-handling and other banking reforms called “Check 21” (Check Clearing for the 21st Century, also known as the Check Truncation Act) to work its way through Congress.
With Check 21, the checks are photographed for archiving and the account and amount information is extracted for processing as soon as they enter the banking system. The checks become purely electronic transactions, which can be processed much faster than physical checks. Once this is done, who cares if the paper dissolves? They were going to be shredded anyway.
Two of the key inspirations for this were the grounding of air travel and anthrax scares of 9/11. For a few days after tht event, we were getting updates every couple hours saying basically “We don’t know where the checks are and we have no idea when they will arrive.”
A related scam involves disappearing ink. Seems much easier at first, but remember, even disappearing ink leaves traces behind that would be visible under certain light, e.g. UV.
There was some speculation in the article (I can’t remember whether it was an AP or UPI wire report) that the ink used in writing the check was the chemical trigger for the check to dissolve. I’m not certain if the check actually combusted or what, but I seem to recall that the residue did turn to ash.
Anyway, I’m sure it is because of scams like this that account for the prevelance of check verification scanning systems in many retail outlets these days.