Counterfeit official checks bearing the name American State Bank, Lubbock, Texas, are reportedly in circulation

American State Bank, Lubbock, Texas, has contacted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to report that counterfeit official checks bearing the institution's name are in circulation.

The counterfeit items are associated with a lottery scam and are accompanied by correspondence sent from "Mega Win International" with an address in Las Vegas, Nevada. The notification states that the recipient has unclaimed prize money and includes a check to cover processing fees. The notification letter reflects a telephone number with a "778" area code, which is assigned to Vancouver, British Columbia.

The counterfeit items include the routing number 051900353, which is assigned to Branch Banking and Trust Company (BB&T), Winston Salem, North Carolina. American State Bank issues official checks through an account held at BB&T. The counterfeit items are dissimilar to authentic official checks in style, font and layout. The counterfeit items display security wording embedded within the top border. Centered at the top are the words "OFFICIAL CHECK" printed inside a rectangular box, which is directly below the name "American State Bank."

Authentic checks include security wording along the top edge of the checks. The checks also have a watermark image of an eagle landing on the letters "ASB," surrounded by a circle, in the center portion of the check.

Copies of a counterfeit item and an authentic check (VOID) are attached for your review. Be aware that the appearance of counterfeit items can be modified and that additional variations may be presented.

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

Vicky McKinney
Vice President and Compliance Officer
American State Bank
1401 Avenue Q
Lubbock, Texas 79408
Telephone: (806) 741-2548
Fax: (806) 472-3516
E-mail: vickym@asbonline.com

To report this scam or any other scam based in or mailed from Canada, please contact Phonebusters, which is a joint partnership between the Ontario Provincial Police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Phonebusters is interested in receiving copies of scam letters, particularly those involving Canadian mailing addresses or telephone numbers. Records relating to the payment of advance fees should also be forwarded to Phonebusters. This information is used to assist in the strategic targeting of would-be fraudsters. Scam letters should be forwarded to the Phonebusters National Call Center (PNCC) as follows:

Mail: Box686
North Bay, Ontario, Canada
P1B 8J8Web site: www.phonebusters.comTelephone: +1 (888) 495-8501 (toll-free in Canada and the USA)Fax: +1 (888) 654-9426 (toll-free in Canada and the USA)E-mail: info@phonebusters.comAdvance fee fraud (including Nigerian and lottery letters): wafl@phonebusters.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 website at www.fdic.gov/news/news/SpecialAlert/2006/index.html. To learn how to automatically receive FDIC Special Alerts through e-mail, please visit www.fdic.gov/about/subscriptions/index.html.

Sandra L. Thompson
Director
Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection