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I was approached by a guy who says he found an uncashed check issued to my name in Texas 4 years ago. The guy seems legit and it is possible that I had an uncashed check at the time. He requested a certain percentage to disclose the details of the check if and only if I am successful in cashing the check. So it doesn't seem to be a scam. I was wondering if there is any way to locate the check on my own. I tried the Texas comptroller search and contacting my former employer and couldn't find anything. Are there companies that do such a search for a fee?

Sorry !!!! Should have come back with an updated. The check was cashed and I got all the money. It took a long while because they had to locate the funds with the comptroller. I touched based directly with the university officials to make sure this was not a scam. BTW, once the comptroller located the check and updated the record I got several letters from various fund recovery companies. I am assuming they automatically follow the comptroller records. I have no idea how the person who originally contacted me had the data ahead of the rest. If I recall correctly the letters requested 15% finders fee. The name of the company who originally contacted me was Parr Recovery Inc. - Jeff London. It was not a scam and he was actually very nice to work with.

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    I'm guessing this is a paycheck? Not a personal check?
    – Michael
    Commented Jun 15, 2017 at 1:18
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    I'll bet you it is a scam after all. He'll send you the check, you'll deposit it to your account, you'll send him his money, and then later the check will bounce, and you'll end up with nothing and some bank charges. Bad checks take longer to bounce back than most people think, and just because your bank accepts it for deposit and credits your account doesn't mean it's good.
    – Nate Eldredge
    Commented Jun 15, 2017 at 1:32
  • We're you approached in person? That's unusual, and a great opportunity to turn this scam artist over to the police.
    – DJClayworth
    Commented Jun 15, 2017 at 12:27
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    How did this guy know to approach you, specifically? All he has is a cheque with a name on it, right? How did he know it was you rather than some other person with the same name? How far and wide has he traveled searching for you? How did he get your phone number / address? If you found a random cheque made out to someone else, would you search across the country to find the person who owns it, or just shrug and move on? Be honest. You know this is a scam.
    – Steve-O
    Commented Jun 15, 2017 at 16:05
  • I researched this a while back. Basically, there are a bunch of laws related to what happens to unclaimed money (e.g., bank accounts that you've allowed to lapse). In cases where any of this information is somewhat public record, there are third party companies which offer to facility recovery for a finders fee (the size of this fee is often regulated). While I recommend recovering this money yourself ( usa.gov/features/free-official-sources-to-find-unclaimed-money ), it's a minor hassle (fill out papers, notarize forms, wait several months, etc.).
    – Brian
    Commented Jan 24, 2019 at 18:58

2 Answers 2

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Let me guess, it's a fairly large amount of money, a few thousand at least. This is a scam.

This is a variation on the many fake check scams out there. You deposit the check and you think it "cleared" your bank, but it didn't clear. A clever fake check can take a couple weeks to bounce and the bank will demand the money back. Any money you wire back to the fraudster in the meantime will be lost forever.

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  • From OP's later updates, this instance turned out to be actually legitimate. Definitely something to be very careful with—even if not a scam it could be money laundering.
    – Kevin
    Commented Aug 21, 2018 at 17:30
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Just FYI for the benefit of future users. Haven't been paid yet nor have I paid but some interesting facts.

I decided to sign the contract with the person who approached me. The contract seemed harmless whereby I only transfer money once I retrieve the funds. Thanks to your comments here I also understood that I must make sure the funds really cleared in my account and can never be cancelled before I transfer anything.

He gave me the information of the check that matched my previous employer and made sense as it was a check issues just after I had left my job and the state.

I did not used the contact details he provided me, but rather found the direct contact details of the go to person in my last institution and contacted them.

I still haven't been able to reclaim the funds, but that is due to internal problems between the state comptroller and my institution. Will come back to update if I am ever successful, but the bottom line is that it is probably not a scam. I am waiting for the final resolution of the case before I post the name of the company which approached me (if it is at all OK per the discussion board rules)

Edit: Update:

Sorry !!!! Should have come back with an updated. The check was cashed and I got all the money. It took a long while because they had to locate the funds with the comptroller. I touched based directly with the university officials to make sure this was not a scam. BTW, once the comptroller located the check and updated the record I got several letters from various fund recovery companies. I am assuming they automatically follow the comptroller records. I have no idea how the person who originally contacted me had the data ahead of the rest. If I recall correctly the letters requested 15% finders fee. The name of the company who originally contacted me was Parr Recovery Inc. - Jeff London. It was not a scam and he was actually very nice to work with.

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  • It has been almost a year. Looks like things may not have worked so well in the end.
    – void_ptr
    Commented Aug 20, 2018 at 2:15
  • see answer below
    – user2387584
    Commented Aug 21, 2018 at 8:26
  • Don't add another answer, edit your previous, accepted, one to include the update. Like: "EDIT: Update: The check was cashed, it was not a scam..."
    – Xalorous
    Commented Aug 21, 2018 at 13:21

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