Counterfeit cashier’s checks drawn on Bank Star, Pacific, Missouri, and Ameriserv Financial Bank, Johnstown, Pennsylvania, are reportedly in circulation

Bank Star, Pacific, Missouri, has reported to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) that counterfeit cashier's checks are in circulation. The counterfeit instruments are drawn upon the bank and display the proper routing number of 081003275. The counterfeit instruments closely resemble the authentic official checks and do not appear to have any distinct characteristics that provide clear differentiation. A copy of a counterfeit check and a copy of an authentic official check (void) are attached for your review.

Any information you have concerning this matter should be brought to the attention of:

Ms. Betty Patterson
Vice President
Bank Star
1999 West Osage Street
Pacific, Missouri 63069
Telephone: (636) 257-2265
Fax: (636) 271-2376

Ameriserv Financial Bank, Johnstown, Pennsylvania, has also reported to the FDIC that counterfeit cashier's checks are in circulation. The counterfeit instruments are drawn upon the bank and display the proper routing number of 031301066. The counterfeit instruments are similar to the authentic official checks; however, beneath the signature line on the bottom right-hand side of the counterfeit check, “authorized signature” is misspelled as “authorised signature.” Additionally, the authentic checks display “CASHIER'S CHECK” in outline form on the bottom left-hand side of the check, while the counterfeit instruments display these words in bold. A copy of a counterfeit check and a copy of an authentic official check (void) are attached for your review.

Any information you have concerning this matter should be brought to the attention of:

Mr. Mike Andrascik
Assistant Security Officer
Ameriserv Financial Bank
216 Franklin Street
Johnstown , Pennsylvania 15901
Telephone: (814) 533-5311
Fax: (814) 533-5112

Information concerning these financial institutions or instruments may be forwarded to the FDIC's Special Activities Section, 550 17th Street, N.W., Room F-4040, Washington, D.C. 20429, or transmitted electronically to alert@fdic.gov. Information related to federal deposit insurance or consumer issues should be submitted to the FDIC using an online form that can be accessed at http://www2.fdic.gov/starsmail/index.asp.

For your reference, FDIC Special Alerts may be accessed from the FDIC's Web site at www.fdic.gov/news/news/SpecialAlert/2004/index.html. To learn how to automatically receive FDIC Special Alerts, Financial Institution Letters and other announcements through e-mail, please visit www.fdic.gov/news/news/announcements/index.html.

Michael J. Zamorski

Director
Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection