Counterfeit official checks drawn on Centier Bank, Whiting, Indiana, and The Dime Bank, Honesdale, Pennsylvania, are in circulation

Centier Bank, Whiting, Indiana, has contacted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to report that counterfeit official checks are in circulation. The counterfeit items display the bank's logo for official checks. However, on the fraudulent items, the bank's logo runs into the top line of the check, while on the authentic official checks, the logo is clearly separate from the top line. In addition, the numbers in the MICR line of the counterfeit checks are in a very large bold font. Both the counterfeit and authentic official checks are drawn on Travelers Express Company. Attached for your review are a copy of a Centier Bank authentic official check (void) and a copy of a counterfeit instrument.

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

Mary C. Phillips
Director of Security
Centier Bank
117 E. Joliet Street
Crown Point, Indiana 46307
Telephone: (219) 663-5100
Fax: (219) 662-3340
mphillip@centier.com

In addition, The Dime Bank, Honesdale, Pennsylvania, has contacted the FDIC to report that counterfeit cashier's checks are in circulation. The counterfeit items are very similar to the bank's authentic cashier's checks. Both items have the same routing number. The main difference is the color of the paper. The fraudulent items are printed on light yellow paper with wavy lines imbedded, while the authentic checks are printed on light blue paper. The counterfeit checks display the dollar amount in a box, while the authentic checks do not contain a box. The counterfeit checks also are perforated on the left side of the check and the authentic checks are perforated on the top and bottom of the check. Attached for your review are a copy of an authentic cashier's check (void) and a copy of a counterfeit instrument.

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

Cynthia Theobald
Security Officer
The Dime Bank
P.O. Box 509
Honesdale, Pennsylvania
Telephone: (570) 253-1970, Ext. 719
Fax: (570) 251-9295
operations@thedimebank.com

Information about these 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 through e-mail, please visit www.fdic.gov/about/subscriptions/index.html. Michael J. Zamorski Director
Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection