[Closed] Someone is giving me money. Why?

I think I'd be very tempted to transfer the funds and close the account. Then change your name, son's name and date of birth.

the police will be visiting shortly to arrest you for money laundering.

I'd like an Ibis Ripley please...

I suspect you are about to go into a lot of debt...

Looks like someone is setting up the conditions for a loan.

eg dodgy dude owns a house, lines up dodgy survey and sells it to "you" at inflated price. "You" pay with a mortgage, so dodgy dude now has the money. A few payments are made from "your" account and then left to default. Next thing you know, bank is on to you, and of course, they don't believe a word you say.

Or...

It sounds like an account set up fraudulantly for money laundering purposes.

I wouldn't be surprised if the £10,000 is withdrawn at some point soon by some other unknown 3rd party.

If you've informed the instutution in question that you never asked for the account to be opened they should have procedures in place & get their fraud department involved.

If I were you id get the police notified to insure against the above/ any other dodgy dealing.

if you fancy keeping it though, just move it 🙂 ( although surely ALL your financial dealings are now very vulnerable if some dodgy scamp knows everything about you)

I'd be a tad concerned if it was me. Whoever has deposited that money, has all your personal details. And, without trying to sound alarmist, people who chuck tens of thousands of pounds into random bank accounts, I would imagine, won't have come by that money legitimately. Otherwise they'd have put it into their own bank account. And I would imagine its rightful owner could be potentially quite scary

I'd be onto the police pretty damn quick. This has money laundering written all over it

Hmmm...

I have contacted the bank, who are investigating, but didn't think about contacting the police. One of my neighbours as a copper. I'll ask MrsG to go knock on his door.

This has money laundering written all over it

Until its been cleaned.

I'd go into damage limitation mode, contact anyone you have an account with, get new cards issued on fresh numbers, contact credit ref agencies and see when/if recent checks have been done etc. Oh and move the money. If you don't want to keep it yourself, it'd be welcome at 40-05-30/51535293 😉

There is no harm in taking a cautious approach, worst case scenario, a nasty headache for sure! I would notifying the police, the bank again & document your actiosn to safegaurd yourself.

Quite scary tbh.

I had something not dissimilar & the first thing the police did was check it wasn't the kids or misses setting me up ... the theory being that it had to be somebody who could access the post.

It wasn't (thank god) and we never really worked it out but the police gave me crime numbers etc which helped when talking to the fraud departments of banks before anything nasty could happen.

Good luck and change everything you can

Considering whoever set up the account is breaking the law by pretending to be you, involving the police is the right thing.

I'd also want the peace of mind of running an experian credit check to see if there are any naughty loans in your name.

I had something along these lines happen to me, although in my case someone was using my details to set up mobile phone contracts. Over a 3 day period I received contract and insurance details for about a dozen new phones with all the main providers, using my personal details.

Report it to the police and get a crime ref number.
Report it to the Bank's Fraud dept

Of course the problem you've got now they have your details is they could possibly open other accounts elsewhere.

[i]I wouldn't be surprised if the £10,000 is withdrawn at some point soon by some other unknown 3rd party.[/i]

I don't understand how someone could deposit or withdraw from this account if the bank account details were sent to you at your home address. How would the person who set up the account get those details for a new account?

I also don't understand that if this is criminal activity then why the perp would think that anyone receiving letters about a new account in your name that you know nothing about and thats got £10k in it wouldn't be asking the bank questions.

And if I were you I wouldn't touch the money, you may have to explain to some very nasty people where their 10k has gone.

Take the money, whats the worst that could happen? You wife is kidnapped and held hostage. Well worth 10k.

flow - Member
Take the money, whats the worst that could happen? You wife is kidnapped and held hostage. Well worth 10k.

<remembers MrsG is an occasional lurker>
Flow! I couldn't possibly do that, please withdraw your statement at once!
</remembers MrsG is an occasional lurker>

I don't understand how someone could deposit or withdraw from this account if the bank account details were sent to you at your home address. How would the person who set up the account get those details for a new account?

Fairly easily - set it up online with a dodgy hotmail account - emails you all the details you need. I could walk into a bank with your sortcode and account number and pay cash into it, normally no questions asked, or a transfer possibly from a credit card that's probably been set up in your name too...

Fairly easy to take payment out too, instant transfer as the scammer obviously has all the passwords to the account.

Not quite "no questions asked" you have to produce photo ID and address verification to deposit cash over a certain amount under Money Laundering regs.

Could you put a block on the account so nothing can come out? Then wait a few years and it all is well spend it.

[i]set it up online with a dodgy hotmail account - emails you all the details you need[/i]

The last time I set up an online account the details weren't emailed to me but posted. Didn't realise it was quite that simple and I would have thought with all the money laundering laws in place than it wouldn't be that simple.

Take the money, whats the worst that could happen?

Yes. Stealing ten grand from professional criminals who [i]know where you live[/i] and have personal details of your family. What's the worst that could happen?

Blimey- he asked for some good well thought out advice didnt he!!!

New bike ..then hookers everytime 😆

Was it exactly £10k placed into that account? What was the originating account? Bear in mind that £10k is enough to trigger a bank's anti money laundering flag requiring confirmation of the source of the funds and any crook worth their salt will know this.

Who was the bank, and have you ever banked with them or any of their associates? You mention it's a supermarket bank, and most of them have a retail banking partner with whom they will have shared systems.

Is it possible that your record was created for another product and thus the linking of the product to your customer record instead of someone else's has been the issue?

Yes. Stealing ten grand from professional criminals who know where you live and have personal details of your family. What's the worst that could happen?

Errr, thats why that sentence was followed by

Your wife is kidnapped and held hostage. Well worth 10k.

🙄

Errr, thats why that sentence was followed by

I was agreeing with you. I know this is STW, but not every post has to be a competitive argument.

That was agreeing? Hmmm

i had a similar thing happen but without the massive balance being put into the account. I called the bank to ask what it was and after a conversation with them they suspended the account and investigated it as it was an ID theft.

The bank also placed a registration on CIFAS which all the banks use in case someone tried it again.

ALso ran an experian check. Was interesting to see that this new account had been checked too, but the bank had not done all they should before setting it up.

Updates:

I've been on to the bank again (Tesco). They've frozen the account, notified CIFAS and will notify the rozzers.

I have been on to Equifax and checked my credit rating - all good there. No mention of the Tescos account though.

I've also been intouch with a friend of mine (who also happens to be CID - why I didn't contact him straight away, I'll never know) and am waiting for a reply.

AlasdairMC - yes it was a straight 10k. The only thing I've ever used Tesco for is online shopping.

Why didn't I empty the account? The thought crossed my mind, but then so did the images of a pair of Heavies with pick-axe handles and a jerry-can of unleaded. 😆

[i]I have been on to Equifax and checked my credit rating - all good there. No mention of the Tescos account though.[/i]

Isn't that very odd?

images of a pair of Heavies with pick-axe handles and a jerry-can of unleaded.

Can you keep posting just so we know you haven't met them?

freddy - have you double checked that the numbers you're calling the bank on are genuine, and not just stuck on the letter to redirect you to the Nigerian call centre?

Very scary OP. I'd also be calling the polis and bank. Get everything documented and acknowledged, if this really is the type of thing epicyclo is talking about it's too big a risk not to. You could end up on the hook for hundreds of thousands of pounds.

I realise this is a tad alarmist but I generally don't get that alarmed by stuff, this however would scare me silly.

So the thugs are now £10k down, I'd pack my bags quickly 😉

Open up an account using a false name and address and forward the money to "them" 😉

[i]So the thugs are now £10k down, I'd pack my bags quickly[/i]

But surely their plan was flawed from the start. Set up bank account in someone elses name, send the account details to that persons house, then pay £10k into said account in the hope that the person doesn't think any of this is odd.

I'm no identity theftist but surely the 'sending the account details to the persons house' is the fatal flaw in the plan?

But the 'thank you we've received your first payment' letter is odd too. But that may well be a supermarket bank welcome strategy.

That's where my money went... Thanks for reminding me, I must have swapped a zero or something....

Please forward it to me (paypal gift to this address) and we'll leave it at that, cheers..

DrP

Could be they're testing the water. It's slightly higher stakes, but my missus found a couple of dodgy transaction on her bank statement some time ago, just a couple of quid here and there - train ticket, phone top up card. She called the bank and they cancelled the card immediately, telling her that often in card fraud there's a few small transactions to see if they get noticed, then they hit it hard and spend spend spend.

It's possible this is something similar, if a banks standard practice is to send account details by post (I'd imagine it is) then maybe they count on people assuming it's junk mail and hoping it gets thrown away. Once that initial postal contact is done you can go online and go crazy. £10k is a hell of a lot of money, but if you stand to make 10s or 100s of k then it might be worth it. If you can defraud to the tune of say 100k per instance, then even if you lose 2 lots of £10k in 5 you're still up by £280k.

Also - could be they have a 'friendly' postman but he was off sick.

Of course, could be my imagination is getting away with me now too! Very interested to hear how this pans out OP, please keep us updated.

in the hope that the person doesn't think any of this is odd.

I guess they work on the assumption that most people are gullible and would go "Woop, woop - free money!!"

It does all seem very peculiar (and a bit scary). I have all of the paperwork in front of me now - including the pre-paid return envelope for returning the signed document to.

The numbers I have called were pulled direct from the Tesco website.

The really scary thing is the heavies - I work away all week. MrsG is at home alone with the BabyGs 😐

Tonyd - our Postie is a top chap (rural area, first name terms etc). I'll mention it to him if I see him at the weekend.

Another thought about the post - you haven't received an empty envelope or one containing a blank sheet of paper have you? I had that, turned out someone had tried to set up a redirect service for my mail, and the letter was testing if it was in place or not. A whole bunch of credit card applications were made in my name at the same time.
I spoke to the police and the Royal Mail and they mentioned something about making sure your entry on the electoral roll is up to date, if it's not, it makes identity theft easier. Mine wasn't.

You are not going to get heavies come round. Its a sophisticated fraud not a armed robbery. Want to get the heavies in? More than ten grand is agvailable

I reckon the bank know more than they are letting on.

We have received your [b]First Payment[/b] ??

How do they know it's the [b]first[/b]? of a number? [b]Payment?[/b] For what?

Close the account. They can't pay any more into it then.

Just thinking back to when it happened to me, the thinking at the time from the bank was that the account was set up & either it was somebody in the house as mentioned before, or it was somebody who thought I would assume it was junk mail & shred it. T
hen after a couple of months they could change the address & they have a working acct in my name.
Problem with that though is why do it with £10k though, why not do it with a little amount?

To the OP - Keep an eye on BOTH credit reference agencies (Experian & Equifax). Financial institutions should update both agencies as to accounts & their activity but that doesn't always happen.

Also keep in mind that it can take up to 3 months for the credit file to be updated so if the account was only opened a month ago it prob won't be on there yet & nor will any searches that will have been done.

Good luck.

So whats the difference in you withdrawing the money, and them confiscating the money?

Either way, who ever put it in their in the first place is 10k down and is going to be at your door with pick axe handles and a can of unleaded.

I would rather that happen whilst being 10k better off, you could use it to get a shotgun and a licence ready for the visit.

DezB - Member
I reckon the bank know more than they are letting on.

We have received your First Payment ??

How do they know it's the first? of a number? Payment? For what?

Close the account. They can't pay any more into it then.

Fair point - if it was a straight deposit account wouldn't you expect them to talk about a [b]deposit[/b] rather than [b]payment[/b]?

[i]It does all seem very peculiar (and a bit scary). I have all of the paperwork in front of me now - including the pre-paid return envelope for returning the signed document to.[/i]

So the documents to set up the account haven't been sent back to the bank yet someone can still make payments into said account?

If he's reported this and the police and bank are involved (as they should be) they're not exactly going to let the OP withdraw the 10k are they?! If nothing else it's probably classed as evidence (despite being numbers on a screen), if he withdraws it he could well be implicating himself.

I'd be more afraid of bankers trying to make me liable for any losses they might incur than I would be of blokes in donkey jackets wielding pick axes.

if it was a straight deposit account wouldn't you expect them to talk about a deposit rather than payment?

Not really, if I send money to someone online from my bank account I click on 'payments' to do it.

Anyway I would have thought the bank could very easily tell you excatly where the money came from. But now that you've reported it as fraud and its not your account then I don't think they'll tell you now.

bigsi
To the OP - Keep an eye on BOTH credit reference agencies (Experian & Equifax)

Do they hold separate sets of information then? I didn't realise that.

<wanders off to Experian>

True enough. I think I need to step away from the thread before I turn into a paranoid Miss Marple. I suppose I could always do some work.

Blimin eck, I think a few people on STW watch it bit too much telly. 😆

<comes running back from Experian, screaming>

Right then, just got back from Experian and there was an identity search performed on me by Tesco the day before they sent the first letter. Nothing else though.

freddyg - There shouldn't be but on occasion there is, as you have just found out. 🙁

You should be able to set up accounts with both to keep an eye on what's going on. You can also mark your credit files with notes IIRC although lenders won't look at this as part of the credit score.

I would check both agencies on a weekly basis at least to see what is going on.

It might be worth speaking to both agencies to see if there is any way an alert can be set up so if a search is carried out you are notified or the lender carrying out the search is warned.

Hopefully this will stop any more accounts being taken out without your knowledge.

Again. Good luck.

Cheers bigsi. I'm drafting a mail now.

Update: Following a chat with the CID friend of mine, he pointed me at the Fraud dept and the local rural office.

I had a lovely e-mail from them who told me ... "In July this year the government announced changes to how Fraud was dealt with by setting up Action Fraud which is a national Fraud reporting agency. The contact number for them is 0300 1232040 they take the details from you and give you a reference number which you in turn give to Tesco. Tesco Bank have their own internal Fraud Investigators who liaise with the Police in which ever area of the country the evidence indicates that the offence took place. [b]Tesco Bank is the aggrieved party in this matter as they are the party who have been deceived.[/b]

However it may be prudent for you to do a credit check on yourself to see if anything untoward appears that you have no knowledge of. I hope I have explained things clearly if you have any other concerns please re-contact us and I will endeavour to assist you further."

Ah. Okay. That's alright then. Thanks.

I've replied along the lines of "but they know where we live!"

[i]I've replied along the lines of "but they know where we live!"[/i]

So what do you want, 24 hour protection?

If this is criminal activity, and I highly doubt it is, then I think whoever has done it would be fairly aware that they may lose £10k.

Are you sure you aren't up to some sort of nefarious activities while sleep walking?

send it to me. I'll sit on it in my account for 'safe keeping' and I'll split the interest / capital with you in 5 years 😉

I am very heavy...so heavies don't bother me 😆

If this is criminal activity, [i]and I highly doubt it is[/i]

... so you think it is perfectly kosha to use the identity of someone else to open an account and deposit £10k into it? Cool. That's alright then 😀

So what do you want, 24 hour protection?

Not really, as I know it is not practical or possible. However, I would have preferred some reassurance rather than flippant dismissal.

We may move in different circles GaryM, but this is something I am not at all familiar or comfortable with.

I am not asking for sympathy or a cuddle; I posted this for comment/discussion and maybe as a warning to others.

any update?