$2 Million Counterfeit Check Scheme Busted

Two 26-year-old men from the Bronx are accused of orchestrating a wide-ranging counterfeit check scheme. According to the NY Times, "Jasper Grayson and James Malloy...hired bank tellers to photocopy paychecks they were handling, and pass the copies to the two men, who created likenesses using nothing more than laptop computers, paper and printers... Next, the men hired people to deposit the counterfeit checks into their bank accounts and then take out the money, in withdrawals that averaged $2,000 apiece." The Daily News reports the laptops "contained check-making software, stolen bank account info and logos used on counterfeit checks, officials said." And the employers included city agencies (like the NYPD), Bed Bath & Beyond, Diane von Furstenberg, Madison Square Garden, and Montefiore Medical Center. Besides Grayson and Malloy, 16 other people were also charged in the 227-count indictment, but many others could be named later—the pair allegedly hired 950 people to cash the checks. And the Post adds, "Investigators think the men used most of the proceeds to finance a high-flying lifestyle of club-going, Cristal champagne and expensive meals."