Consumer complaint received 2022-06-22
Product: Checking or savings account — Checking account
Issue: Problem caused by your funds being low — Bounced checks or returned payments
Company: BANK OF AMERICA, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION (CA)

This older lady DM 'd me on XXXX about two months ago asking if I would be interested in being her text buddy ( nothing XXXX ) getting paid {$1000.00} a week. I was skeptical but she assured me she was just rich and loves to help people out that are in financial need. She said she would email me a check and told me to do the mobile deposit on my banking app. I tried doing the mobile deposit but it did not go through. We had many conversations, but to keep it brief she later tells me that she got a call from her Grandpa last night and that he is at the ICU in critical condition. She lives in XXXX, but is in XXXX for a business trip and is concerned because she needs to pay his medical bills. She says she will send me extra money along side with my allowance and asks If I can send it to her grandpa 's nanny. I ask if she has anyone else that can help her ( see attached messages ). I figure since she is giving me a lot of money I can do her a favor since this is HER money after all. She says she will get her account manager to send me a check for {$8600.00}. On XX/XX/XXXX I only had {$3700.00} in my checking account. I go to the ATM on XX/XX/XXXX and deposit the check. The next day on XX/XX/XXXX, sure enough my balance is at {$12000.00}. I believe that this is real money that she has sent me since the bank cleared it so easily. I could have easily kept it, but I am someone of my word so I go into the bank and withdraw {$7200.00} cash. I take this cash to a nearby Bitcoin ATM so I can send the funds to her Grandpa 's nanny 's XXXX address. She send 's me another check a week later in the same amount {$8600.00} but says I can keep {$2000.00} for my troubles. I deposit the check at the same ATM on XX/XX/XXXX. XX/XX/XXXX the check is cleared and my account balance is at {$13000.00}. Again, I go into the bank and withdraw {$6600.00} and send it to the same XXXX address. She later asks me to send more funds but I refuse since I never agreed upon this and was just doing her a one time favor. I stop speaking with her. 

Everything is fine and a month goes by. However the other day on XX/XX/2022 I receive a ( debit adjustment duplicate item reversal ) of - {$8600.00} leaving my account balance at- {$4000.00}.... I did not even know that this was possible. I go into the bank to speak with a supervisor to let them know that I think this might be a case of fraud. She pulls up the check images and sure enough this lady sent me the same check twice. ( however you can see that my signature is different, I thought I was signing two different checks ). Bank of America has just caught this duplicate check and its a whole month later! I am worried that the original check is fraud as well and that the bank just hasn't caught it yet. Which will then leave me owing {$17000.00} and the funds taken out are long gone that I trustingly gave to this lady. 

I am only XXXX XXXX XXXX. I have rent to pay at the end of the month and school to pay for starting in XXXX. I never thought this sort of thing was even possible or I never would have accepted or sent her any money. Scammers obviously know that people are not aware of how banks deals with money, so we are easy targets and they are never caught and held responsible. I thought that there were surely security measures that my bank was taking to make sure these checks were verified, however no security measures were taken seeing that the funds were so easily assessable. I understand that I am partially to blame for being naive and too trusting. However, I think Bank Of America also has some responsibility for their lack of security when it comes to these types of scammers preying on their customers. 

I told Bank of America about this fraudulent issue as soon as I was aware. I have also spoke to the Police about my case, contacted the FTC, and the CA State Attorney General.