Denver DA's office probing fraudulent BOCS checks

Denver DA's office probing fraudulent BOCS checks

Mar. 7, 2001

By Aspen C. Emmett
Journal Staff Writer

Law-enforcement officers are another step closer to solving the case of fraudulent checks cashed at the expense of Southwest Board of Cooperative Services, but there is still no word as to why the educational service was targeted.

"There is an investigation by the Denver District Attorney’s Office and we have the same suspects," said Cortez Police Detective Jim Bob Wynes. "Because the actual crimes occurred in the metro area it’s pretty much out of our jurisdiction, but I’m trying to do as much as I can here for them."

The executive director of BOCS, Vic Bruce, said 14 counterfeit checks totaling $14,650.48 were cashed in the Denver area bearing BOCS’s name and bank.

"I cannot imagine how they did this," Bruce said. "And we’re waiting with bated breath to find out, if we can, how these people were able to do what they did because it’s very realistic in looking at the checks — no doubt about it."

Wynes said the suspect or suspects belong to a crime ring responsible for numerous other fraud cases.

"This ring targeted a whole bunch of people," Wynes said. "This whole little ring was pretty sophisticated. We’re talking hundreds of thousands of dollars (of fraud) that they’ve done. One of the guys we’re looking at, they’ve got 17 grand-jury indictments out of Denver (on the suspect)."

Wynes said the indictments are for fraudulent checks amounting to somewhere in the neighborhood of $286,000.

"There’s some chances that at least one individual could be charged with at least two of the (BOCS) checks," Wynes said. "What will happen is I’ll forward everything to Kent Prose, the investigator with the Denver DA’s office."

Wynes said he could not comment on whether the checks were made out to or endorsed by actual people or if they were fraudulent names.

However, both Wynes and Bruce said the suspects were not employees of BOCS and were not thought to be from the Four Corners area.

"It’s good that we didn’t recognize any of the names," Bruce said.

Because the checks were all cashed in the Denver area, Wynes said he had a good starting point from which to direct the investigation.

"I made some phone calls because it’s in the metro area and I just started calling all the different jurisdictions and trying to see if anybody had any current cases going," Wynes said.

Kent Pros, an investigator with the Economic Crime Unit with the Denver DA’s office, is handling the primary investigation but was unable to comment on the case.

"I’ve discussed it with Detective Wynes but I don’t have anything on it yet," Pros said.

Bruce said that the incident was the first time BOCS had been the victim of fraudulent checks of such magnitude. The experience has put officials on alert, keeping a close eye on activity on the account.

"We’ve taken safeguards to ensure that it never happens again, but I guess, out there now, you can’t be sure that it won’t," Bruce said.

BOCS officials became aware of the fraudulent checks when they noticed the agency’s account balance was off.

"That’s where we obviously picked up on this," Bruce said. "We identified it. We contacted the bank and the bank was very cooperative to get on top of everything as well."

BOCS is in the process of recovering damages through insurance claims.

"Everything is in the process on it but that’s why you carry insurance," Bruce said. "So we’ll just have to wait and see how everything plays out."

BOCS provides educational services to Dolores, Mancos, Dove Creek and Cortez.

"It’s a community-based educational service," Bruce said. "We supply technology, adult basic education, GED testing."