Robert
Irvine,#2Consumer Comment
Tue, September 20, 2011
I guess it didn't take that much convincing that it was a good idea to cash a check and send a person you don't know a couple thousand dollars. The reason it didn't take that much convincing is because you saw "easy money", and that is what they rely on.
Unfortunately you are not an innocent party. When you deposited the check in your account you represented it was a valid check. As such you are responsible for making good on the check if it comes back as bad. Normally you could then go after the person who sent you the check. But since every bit of information they gave you was fake, the phone is to a throw-away cell phone, and to top it off they are not even in the US. You are not going to be able to track them down to try and get your money back.
The only thing a lawyer will tell you is to see if you can work out some sort of payment arrangements with the bank to pay back the money you owe. If you don't pay it back the bank will most likely turn you over to a collection agency and may sue you for the money that is owed. At the same time they will close your account and turn you into ChexSystems, this will make it impossible for you to open another account at any regular bank for several years. You will need to deal with "second chance" banks that have much higher fees and restrictions.
I am sorry if this is not what you want to hear, but realize there is no "easy money". So to make sure you don't fall into other traps. No matter how convincing they are, anytime someone you do not personally know asks you to send money through Western Union(or equivalent) you must treat it as a scam and move on.