Counterfeit official checks bearing the name Union Bank, Marksville, Louisiana, are reportedly in circulation

The Union Bank, Marksville, Louisiana, has contacted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to report that counterfeit official checks bearing the institution's name are in circulation.

The counterfeit items display the routing number 061103056, which is assigned to Wachovia Bank, N.A., Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The Union Bank issues its official checks through Moneygram Payment Systems, Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota, using a payable through account with Wachovia Bank, N.A.

The items are similar to authentic official checks; however, the state name is misspelled as "Louisana" in the top-left corner. Counterfeit items have ornate scroll borders on the top and sides with a square at each top corner and a circle at each bottom corner. A written dollar amount line is in the center.

Authentic official checks have ornate borders along all four edges. There is no written dollar amount line; instead, the amount is embossed. A solid blue rectangle is shown between the "PAY TO THE ORDER OF" and numeric dollar amount lines.

Copies of a counterfeit item and an authentic check (VOID) are attached for your review. Be aware that the appearance of counterfeit items can be modified and that additional variations may be presented.

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

Vickie Laborde
Assistant Cashier and Head Bookkeeper
The Union Bank
305 North Main Street
Marksville, Louisiana 71351
Telephone: (318) 253-4531, extension 236
Fax: (318) 253-9163
E-mail: vml@ubbanking.com

Information about counterfeit items, cyber-fraud incidents and other fraudulent activity may be forwarded to the FDIC's Cyber-Fraud and Financial Crimes Section, 550 17th Street, N.W., Room F-3054, Washington, D.C. 20429, or transmitted electronically to alert@fdic.gov. Questions 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 website at www.fdic.gov/news/news/SpecialAlert/2010/index.html. To learn how to automatically receive FDIC Special Alerts through e-mail, please visit www.fdic.gov/about/subscriptions/index.html.

Sandra L. ThompsonDirector
Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection