District Attorney Dee Bates is warning area residents of aCanada-based check scheme that has caught some residentsoff-guard.

Bates said people have been receiving letters from companieslisting U.S. addresses, but whose numbers return to pre-paid cellphones based in Canada.

The letter states that through a promotion with Wal-Mart andCoca-Cola, the addressee has won a sizable cash prize. Enclosed inthe letter is a fraudulent check for a small portion of thatamount.

Some checks are for $2,500 for more, Bates said.

The letter then instructs the addressee to wire back asubstantial percentage of that check as a processing fee so thatthe total amount can be sent to the addressee by Fed-Ex Next DayDelivery or some other quick shipping method.

“The thing is if you’re a scammer and you print up thesefraudulent checks and letters and send them out, if even 10 percentof them come back, that’s still a significant amount of moneyyou’ve made,” Bates said.

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