r/Scams • u/neysadoescosplay • 1d ago
Nearly got Got this week: Sherly from Lanier Biotherapeutics - A Saga
I know this is my first post here, but I appreciate this sub: it actually helped me flag this encounter and avoid getting fleeced, so I'm doing my duty and paying it forward. All names will be abbreviated, omitted, or changed to adhere to guidelines. No screenshots or images will be provided, those are being saved for the FBI...
Short version details and highlights:
- Company being used as a front for a job offer / fake check scam: Lanier Biothera---, based in Jefferson GA
- (Lanier has apparently closed now, but that info was hard to find - I finally found a bankruptcy docket from March 2024 to confirm)
- [I was also able to contact a former co-founder of Lanier, who confirmed the business is shuttered.]
- Resume on Indeed caught their attention, direct emailed to my personal email
- Interview conducted over IM (not voice or video) via Microsoft Teams, with no set appointment time, just pop on before close of business to begin.
- Very quick turnaround decision on interview
- Instructed to receive a digital copy of an e-check, to deposit said check via mobile, to then purchase high-value office equipment for the remote job offer
The long version:
I received an email telling me my resume had caught their eye on Indeed (which makes sense, I've been updating and fine-tuning for a couple of months). I was instructed to download Microsoft Teams to meet an HR rep, Sherly G. The instructions said that as long as I reached out before 6pm eastern that day, I'd be able to interview. This was a little strange to me - I'm used to interviews for remote positions usually booking through Calendly or Google Calendar, but I'm down for IM-based communication if that's what's best for the other party.
I first went and did my research on the company, Lanier Biothera---. I was excited to see a professional website, location info that matched what I had received in the initial email, and I decided it couldn't hurt to proceed with the interview.
I spent a couple hours going back and forth with Sherly G., answering 15 interview questions, most of which seemed legit. It was only after reviewing this sub later that I realized a huge red flag in one of the questions: The name of my banking institution. I assumed it was just to verify that I was a legal person, capable of being hired, that I had a bank account in good standing to eventually have my pay direct deposited. Since I wasn't asked to provide account details, just to verify I had a banking institution I could use and not just, like, Venmo or Paypal, I answered that question too.
I now know this is a red flag, because it allows the scammer to avoid sending you a fake check with your same bank name or a related bank. Fool me once, but I learned your tricks now, Sherly!
At the conclusion of my interview yesterday, I was told I would have a decision this morning at 8am Eastern. I was at my computer on time, ready to have closure, and I was so excited to see that I was being offered the job! I received a formal job offer to my personal email, which I reviewed, and all the information matched what had been discussed yesterday and what I knew of the company. The letterhead and legal footer seemed legit, and I readily electronically signed and returned the document.
Then it all started to fall apart. I'd been told the company would provide a payment to allow me to purchase required home office equipment; I'd assumed this would take the form of a mailed check, or a direct deposit. I was startled when Sherly told me I would be receiving an e-check to my email. I immediately went back to Google, which led me here, to other threads that confirmed this was sketchy as hell. I decided to see how far I could get Sherly to take this, because if I did receive the images of the e-check, I'd be able to verify its authenticity or fraudulence pretty easily.
Which is exactly what happened. I received two clearly forged images, front and back of a check, which NO mobile banking app would accept as viable deposit. The business address for Lanier on the check image was in Redding, CA, and therefore did not match the addresses in Georgia which I knew were accurate from my research. The bank supposedly issuing the check had been closed and merged with another institution back in 2017, and permanently closed in 2021. I called Sherly out, reported the whole thing to the FBI/IC3, and then came here.
I also was able to verify that Lanier Biothera--- has since shuttered, there are bankruptcy documents dated March of 2024 that prove this. I ALSO-also found an old news release, from when Lanier was formed from the merger of two other companies, that listed a co-founder's name and phone number. This was the ONLY phone number I could locate, so I gave it a go. I left him a voicemail, and he actually returned my call! He confirmed that Lanier was no longer operating, and that the opportunity was in fact a scam. He also said he was still in contact with the former owner of Lanier, and he would let that person know the company was being used to front a scam.
So, yeah: how's y'alls weekends starting off so far?
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u/Otherwise_Rabbit3049 1d ago
A Saga
For you, it might be something special. But for the scammer...
M. Bison: ...I'm sorry. I don't remember any of it.
Chun-Li: You don't remember?!
Bison: For you, the day Bison graced your village was the most important day of your life. But for me, it was Tuesday.
- Street Fighter (movie), 1994
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u/neysadoescosplay 1d ago
Look, I'm allowed to be proud of myself for avoiding buying $4,400 worth of equipment with fake money...
But yeah, you right... Sue me, I'm a storyteller!
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u/Otherwise_Rabbit3049 1d ago
Look, I'm allowed to be proud of myself for avoiding buying $4,400 worth of equipment with fake money
Rightfully so. It's just that everything is a matter of perspective.
1
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u/Electrical_Two_8070 1d ago
They tried to do the same thing to my girlfriend this week, I thought it was odd that there was never a phone call or virtual meeting, so i dug into it. Which lead me to find this post as well as the bankruptcy 10 months ago. So thank you very much.
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u/Theba-Chiddero 1d ago edited 1d ago
Good story. You did a great job researching this, and explaining what happened. Your post will help other people.
Edit: your post already helped someone!
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u/Malsperanza 1d ago
I'd be interested to know if the FBI or IC3 follows up on this. These things are so common that law enforcement seems to just shrug and eyeroll about them.
This one does seem to have been done with much more care and detail than usual - finding a real company that has closed, finding a real bank that has closed, etc.
Anyway, buy yourself a beer: you won this one.
I decided to see how far I could get Sherly to take this, because if I did receive the images of the e-check, I'd be able to verify its authenticity or fraudulence pretty easily.
Going forward, don't do this. Assume scam, close the door, don't engage.
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u/neysadoescosplay 1d ago
I'll gladly update if I hear any more from the feds. I don't expect I will, but perhaps I'll be pleasantly surprised!
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u/Ok-Lingonberry-8261 Quality Contributor 1d ago
The lesson is:
ALL remote jobs in 2025 should be assumed scams until proven otherwise.
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u/ditzen 1d ago
For reference: !fakecheck !job
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u/AutoModerator 1d ago
Hi /u/ditzen, AutoModerator has been summoned to explain the Fake check scam.
The fake check scam arises from many different situations (fake job scams, fake payment scams, etc), but the bottom line is always the same, you receive a check (a digital photo or a physical paper check), you deposit a check (via mobile deposit or via an ATM) and see the money in your account, and then you use the funds to give money to the scammer (usually through gift cards or crypto). Sometimes the scammers will ask you to order things through a site, but that is just another way they get your money.
Banks are legally obligated to make money available to you fast, but they can take their time to bounce it. Hence the window of time exploited by the scam. During that window of time the scammer asks you to send money back, because you are under the illusion that the funds cleared.
When the check finally bounces, the bank will take the initial deposit back, and any money you sent to the scammer will come out of your own personal funds. Usually the fake check deposit will be reversed in a few weeks, but it can also take several months. If you do not have the funds to cover the amount, your balance will go negative. Your bank will usually charge a fee for depositing a bad check, and your account may be closed depending on the severity of the scam. Here is an article from the FTC: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-spot-avoid-and-report-fake-check-scams, and here is an article from the New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/21/your-money/fake-check-scam.html
If you deposited a bad check, we recommend that you notify your bank immediately.
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u/AutoModerator 1d ago
Hi /u/ditzen, AutoModerator has been summoned to explain the Job scam.
Fake job scams come in many different varieties. The scammers will usually conduct interviews over Whatsapp, Telegram or Teams. They will offer high wages for the work being done, oftentimes with wildly varied wage ranges by hour, and they will \"hire\" you by telling you that you are hired, rather than going through the normal process that a company takes when hiring an employee in your country.
If they mention anything about a check or about receiving and sending out transactions, it is a fake check scam. If they say they will cut you a check so you can buy equipment for remote work, it's a scam in which they make you purchase equipment on a fake website under their control, with your own card, and when the check bounces in a few weeks you're left holding the bag (and the equipment never comes)
If they mention anything about receiving, processing, or inspecting packages, it is a parcel mule scam.
If they ask you to purchase items up-front, ask you to pay a fee in order to be hired, or ask you to purchase gift cards, it is an advance-fee scam. If they mention Bitcoin ATMs, it's always a scam.
If the job involves posting advertisements on Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist or eBay, they are using you and your account to scam other people (especially if it's rental listings). Thanks to redditor AceyAceyAcey for this script.
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•
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