South Florida small business owner warns of elaborate fraudulent check scheme

A home inspector is warning every small business owner to be on the lookout for an elaborate fraudulent check scheme that nearly cost him over a thousand dollars.

Javier Otero is a home inspector who says it's not unusual for out-of-town buyers looking for local real estate to hire him over the phone.

"They provide me the address and some information on the property. And then I check online, it's my protocol," Javier said.

Protocol he says he followed when a person who identified himself as an out-of-state buyer called him asking him to inspect a home in Hialeah. He says he went online, saw it was for sale and then gave the supposed buyer a quote for his services.

"He asked me if he could pay me with a cashier's check. And I accept with the condition that as soon as the funds are available in my account, then I will be able to do the inspection," Javier said.

The buyer agreed and put the cashier's check in the mail. That check was delayed by the postal service for a few weeks but when it finally arrived it was for $1,950, well over the amount Javier had quoted for the inspection.

"And then when I asked him by text message, he said that please give the difference amount of money to someone that was doing some floor installation or something like that," he said.

To make sure it wasn't a scam, he says he asked the buyer for a picture ID of the person he was supposed to send the money to, and he called his bank Chase and asked a representative if the check he had received and deposited for $1,950 was fake.

"They say, no, move forward. You don't have any problem. The check looks good. Everything will be fine. And then your funds are available and nobody can remove those funds from your account. So, if you want to do the Zelle, do it," Javier said.

He says he sent the alleged flooring contractor $1,250 and two days later got a call from the buyer canceling the inspection.

"I just checked the bank and immediately I saw the check was bounced and the funds weren't available anymore," he said.

Javier says he spent the next few days filing fraud reports, with his bank, the Federal Trade Commission and the Postal inspector's office but wasn't able to get his money back, so he called NBC6 Responds and we contacted his bank who immediately reached out to him.

"They call me, and they give me a case. They said, they told me, please file a claim online. I did it. And after that, like two days later, the money was in my account," Javier said. "I'm very, very grateful for this."

In a statement, a Chase spokesperson told us: "We are happy we were able resolve this issue for our customer. People should never deposit or return any unexpected funds without calling their bank first."

Javier says he tells his story to warn others.

If you have a case that you haven't been able to solve on your own, you can reach out to the NBC6 Responds team on our website NBC6.com/Responds

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