Counterfeit cashier's checks drawn on Sonoma Valley Bank, Sonoma, California, are reportedly in circulation

Sonoma Valley Bank, Sonoma, California, has contacted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to report that counterfeit cashier's checks bearing the institution's name are in circulation.

The counterfeit items display the proper routing number of 121141615; however, the fraudulent items are markedly dissimilar to authentic bank checks. The counterfeit items display the bank name and address centered near the bottom of the check. The counterfeit items also include the wording "Cashier's Check" in the lower-left portion of the check. Authentic cashier's checks display the wording "Cashier's Check" centered at the top of the check. A copy of a counterfeit item and a copy of an authentic cashier's check (VOID) are attached for your review.

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

Cathleen Gorham
Senior Vice President
Branch Operations Administrator
Sonoma Valley Bank
202 West Napa Street
Sonoma, California 95476
Telephone: (707) 935-3200
Fax: (707) 935-5814
cgorham@sonomavlybnk.com

Information about these instruments may be forwarded to the FDIC's Cyber-Fraud and Financial Crimes Section, 550 17th Street, N.W., Room F-4004, 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/2005/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. ZamorskiDirector
Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection