300 Ala Moana

Blvd.
Honolulu, HI,
96813

Honolulu FBI Press Office FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Phone: (808) 566-4356 February 22, 2010

Honolulu Law Firms Targeted in Financial Crime Wave

Charlene Thornton, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Honolulu Office of the Federal
Bureau of Investigation, is cautioning Honolulu’s legal community to be on alert for fraud
schemes focused upon local attorneys. Over the past six weeks, the FBI has received
reports of six different Honolulu law firms targeted in schemes with aggregate reported
losses exceeding $500,000.
The recent scam begins with email contact from a prospective client overseas
seeking legal representation in a civil law matter, such as a divorce. The client sends the
law firm a cashier’s check for a legal fee retainer in an amount far exceeding industry
standards. When the law firm informs the client that he/she has overpaid the retainer, the
client requests a wire transfer refund to a foreign account. After the law firm sends the wire
transfer refund, the firm learns that the cashiers check retainer was counterfeit, and the law
firm sustains a loss in the amount of the refund wire transfer.
The defrauders have been requesting that the wire transfers be sent to bank accounts
in South Korea, Taiwan, and Canada. It is likely that these bank accounts are simply “relay
accounts” designed to serve as the initial stop before the money moves onward to other
locations.
The FBI has seen variations on this scheme in the past focused upon individuals
selling items on CraigsList. This is the first time that Honolulu’s legal community has been
specifically targeted by defrauders using this particular scam.
Law firms and other professional service providers are cautioned to be on high alert
when dealing with clients who come forth via the internet. Furthermore, no wire transfers
should ever be sent to clients as refunds until the initial payment from the client has fully
cleared the banking system.
The Honolulu FBI will be working with FBI personnel in U.S. embassies overseas
and with foreign law enforcement authorities to identify the defrauders.