Counterfeit cashier's checks drawn on Washington Trust Bank, Spokane, Washington, are reportedly in circulation

Washington Trust Bank, Spokane, Washington, has contacted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to report that counterfeit checks bearing the institution's name are in circulation.

The counterfeit items display the routing number 125100089, which is assigned to Washington Trust Bank, Spokane, Washington. The counterfeit items are dissimilar to authentic checks. The counterfeit items display a boxed border, although the border lines are different. The counterfeit items also have an oversized logo, and the check serial number is printed in black. Both authentic and counterfeit checks display a pantograph background with the bank logo repeating throughout the check, although this feature is not reflected in the attached counterfeit check. Authentic checks are perforated on the left side, while counterfeit checks are perforated at the top and bottom. A copy of a counterfeit item and an authentic check (VOID) are attached for your review.

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

John R. Weber
Vice President and Security Officer
Washington Trust Bank
717 West Sprague
Spokane, Washington 99201
Telephone: (509) 353-3858
Fax: (509) 358-8151
jweber@watrust.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-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.

Christopher J. Spoth

Acting Director
Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection