A 78-year-old Hawaii Kai man is on the hook for more than $100,000 after he agreed to be a financial intermediary in a supposed hotel purchase, police said.
The man, a former hotel manager, received an email in November from people purporting to be Malaysian investors interested in buying a Hawaii hotel. He was also asked to run the hotel after the purchase, police said.
As part of the deal, the man received a Canadian check in an amount exceeding $100,000 and was told to forward the money to Malaysia.
The man deposited the check, and about eight or 10 days later the bank informed him it had cleared, he said. He then sent the funds to a Malaysian bank.
But after another eight days, he said, his bank contacted him and told him the check was bogus. Now it wants its money back from him.
"It’s 100 percent the bank’s mistake," said the man, who asked not to be named. "It’s a nightmare. It’s unbelievable. … They close your accounts, then try to recoup the money."
He declined to name the bank because he is negotiating with it.
Edward Pei, executive director of the Hawaii Bankers Association, said scammers often use foreign banks because international checks can take several weeks to clear.
Pei said a bank may make the funds available before the check has actually cleared, often as a courtesy to the customer. But he said banks should inform customers when they give provisional credit rather than a true clearance.
The depositor of a forged check is often held responsible. "That risk always exists for depositors," he said.
Police Lt. John McCarthy said Thursday the case has the hallmarks of a so-called "Nigerian scam," in which victims typically are asked to send money directly or through Western Union or MoneyGram. Forwarding money is a new twist, he said.
