Ocean County Prosecutor Joseph D. Coronato today warned county residents of fraudulent mailings sent under the guise of a legitimate name bank reporting a possible inheritance. A sample of this scam letter using the TD logo is attached.

In the past week there have been several reports of local residents receiving this letter, which is nothing more than another version of the “Nigerian Scam” utilizing company symbols located on the Internet to develop these types of documents. The counterfeit documents are mailed or emailed as part of a “phishing scam” to steal personal information or money.

The attached letter is a classic example of the scam. Claiming to be from “TD Canada” with a return address on the envelope for Costco Wholesale, the letter states to not disclose these accounts to anyone until the money is received which is a huge red flag. They promise access to inheritance money because of a similar last name, which no legitimate company would ever actively seek to disperse.

“REMEMBER IF IT’S TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE – IT’S NOT TRUE”

These unscrupulous con artists manufacturing the documents are in most cases located outside the US. They utilize internet based websites and programs to mask their real phone numbers and locations. This makes the investigation and prosecution difficult and recovering your money virtually impossible.

Anyone who receives these documents should report them to the Federal Trade Commission website www.ftc.gov. If victimized call the Office of the Ocean County Prosecutor at 732-929-2027.

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