Dear Sir or Madam:
My name is LA Cook, LA is short for LeAnn. I am the mother of 23-year-old Michael Huffman who has been ripped off by BODOG.net and I want the entire USA to know about it. Here is our story:
In December of 07 Michael was forced to quit his job due to Sexual Harassment, under his lawyer advice it was better for Michael body, mind, and soul to leave then to keep enduring the pain and pressure of the sexual harassment. This was a very bold brave and hard move for this 23-year-old proud young man. It caused a serious of emotions and emotional states, including depression.
Michael was spending a lot of his free time on a poker site called BODOG.net Never once did he think any thing about this site being illegal or not legitimate. I mean they have commercials and ads every place including the NFL Super Bowl hosted by Fox Network. So who would challenge their validity with that kind of endorsements, right?
Twice on January 21 and January 28, Michael played in online poker tournaments and won. On February 8, he received a cashier’s check from Bank of America it came over night express delivered by FedEx and the cashiers check was for $3700.88. Michael does not have his own bank account so his brother’s girlfriend told him to deposit it in her account. Michael took the check to the bank, Wells Fargo. The teller called for the manager, she inturn put the cashiers check under the UV light, and signed off on it, and the funds were available the next day. Which my older son’s girlfriend took out of her account and gave to my son Michael. On February 15, the second cashiers check arrived for $3550.00 from AMBANK. My son called his brother’s girlfriend again and she said ya go ahead and deposit it. Michael again took the cashiers check to Wells Fargo Bank, the teller called the manager, she put the check under the UV light and signed off on it. This time however she put a five-day hold on the check for funds to become ready available.
Michael called his future sister in-law and told her. That is when all “hell†broke loose. Allison, that is my future daughter in-laws’ name, went online and found that her account was negative -$2300.00 and the first Cashiers check for $3700.88 was returned. Allison called the bank and asks, “how can a cashier’s check that was verified and signed off by a bank manager be returned?†The answer given was you need to contact the maker of the check. So the first cashiers check for $3700.88 made of Bank of America out of Seattle WA was contacted. We were told the account is a valid account but it does not belong to BODOG or to the purchaser of the check, which is Oliva Hewgley. We were also told that the check number was not a valid check number nor was the routing number. So what does all that mean? The answer is it is a counterfeit check, not valid a fraud.
Therefore, we tried to find this Oliva Hewgley out of Fort Worth Texas, no such luck. The shipper on the FedEx envelope is a Dexton Payment Company. Guess what no phone number for them either. Therefore, we called FedEx. Within in a breath of saying we got this envelope from the Dexton Payment Company out of Forth Worth, the Lady at FedEx said, that company is under investigation please call this number to file your report and claim.
Therefore, we did, and the number was to the FBI. First, we got this long lecture about how it is illegal to gamble online in the USA. Which blew my mind, if it is illegal why does this BODOG have commercials and ads everywhere INCLUDING the SUPER BOWL? After the conversation, I looked up information online about online gambling. Now I am move confused then ever if it is legal or illegal. Poker is a game of Skill, and Tournaments is an entry fee. Oh well the Supreme Court can figure all that out, all I want is my future daughter in-laws’ account brought back in good standing and the people passing illegal cashiers checks behind bars.
The FBI agent we spoke too, basically said there were a lot of these counterfeit checks out and about, and we should talk to the Fraud Department at the Bank where they where deposited. They also told us to contact the FedEx station in Forth Worth directly to see if they had any more information or video. We called the number they gave us. It was a fax number, we sent a fax and never got a reply back.
I am one of these people who keeps everything in a file, for just incase or whatever needs purposes. I just happened to make photocopies of both checks and both mailing labels from both checks. The second check came from AMBANK it was purchased by a Lee Barnes and sent over night by UPS from a Dorothy Grawett in Cortland NY. I felt it was time to verify this check for $3500.00 Guess what, it is a fake fraud phony counterfeit check as well. AMBANK was disbursed in December 07 and was taken over by Regions Finical, and after investigating them on the internet, I decided it was time to call the local police department here in Red Wing.
First, my son Michael called BODOG and after making nine calls to four different numbers we finally got a supervisor and when my son told them the story, their response was. We do not even have your account as cashing out or winning any tournaments. They said they would investigate it and get back to us if they found any kind of errors. Guess what, we have not heard back!
Therefore, Michael called Red Wing, MN police department and spoke to Sergeant Graves. The Sergeant said he would file a report and give it to an Investigator. Michael took copies of all the paper work and phone numbers and account numbers we were given. The Sergeant told Michael to have his sister in-law talk to a VP or a President at Wells Fargo and get their Fraud Dept involved as well. When we contacted a Wells Fargo officer, we were told to do the groundwork ourselves because it could take them months to get it started.
We made another call to UPS since they delivered the second check, guess what they gave us a case number for their ongoing investigation as well. OK so next stop an attorney. Because not only do I want my future daughter in-laws’ account back in good standings, and the people who are sending these counterfeit cashier checks behind bars, I want BODOG. NET closed down and held responsible as well. People are being ripped off in plain broad daylight and running ads and commercials in respected venues like the Super Bowl? Come on!
Why isn’t the NFL or FOX checking out and validating who is running commercials on their airtime? On the other hand, doesn’t that matter as long as they put their money down?
Why is BODOG allowed to operate and let US Citizen gamble and take their credit card and money if they cant legally play?
Why isn’t there an all out alert to Banks around the US about these counterfeit cashiers’ checks? Why isn’t Bank of America or Regions Finical up in arms and trying to find out and do something about this?
Who are Oliva Hewgley, Lee Barnes, Dorothy Grawett, and Dexton Payment Co. Why isn’t FedEx and UPS doing more to get these people for using their services to send COUNTERFIT CASHIERS CHECKS?
If these checks where so good they even fooled the Ultra Violet Light and the Bank Manager, and they made funds available next day, why are they not stepping up to the plate and doing the right thing?
I challenge ANYONE reading this letter to help find the underlying cause of this and stop this crime, and make the criminals pay the price of their felonies.
Sincerely,
LA Cook
UPSET MOTHER & US CITIZEN
You will find a copy of this letter on the web, which I will register with all search engines.
http://webpages.charter.net/lacook/la.htm