Shelter Aid Corporation, Loss Prevention Management Center Fraudulent check scandal. Claiming I had won 39,000 dollars, if I follow all the steps. BIG MISTAKE!!! Rochester New York

I recently recieved a letter in the mail congratulating me that I was approved for a Home Improvement Grant of $39,000.00, located in an escrow account pending claim.
The number and person to contact for information about the letter was Peter Winfred or Debbie Hayes between the hours 8:30am-10:00pm, monday-saturday. I called and spoke with Peter. He assured me that this was not a scam or a joke, and then congratulated me again.

He told me I was randomly selected from Readers Digest and Publishers' Clearing House databases, by a ballot from retail and home improvement stores.

Enclosed with the letter was a check for $1,980.00, which I was to deposit in my bank account. I then gave him the check number and he said he had "activated" the check for me and it was now good to deposit.

In order for me to receive the rest of my winnings, I had to give $1,500.00 to my agent Kathy Woods, 1220 Linden Blvd. in Brooklyn, NY 11238.

He said the only way to send the money was through Western Union, and the money left over from the check was for me to keep.

My bank did not detect anything wrong with the check. By the way, Wells Fargo was the bank name on the check, which is not my bank, but I thought it was okay. I took out the $1500 and Western Union it to Kathy Woods.

Next, I was to call Peter back and give him the confirmation number. After, I finished this transaction with him, he then gave me a date 12-12-08 when I would recieve the $37,020.00, which is tomorrow.

The reason I am writing to you is because on 12-8-08, I checked my balance in my account and I was -$1,900.00. I spoke with a representative and she told me that the check that I deposited for $1,980.00 was not good.

Now I have a negative balance and no money for my family. I am already paying debts and loans off, and thought this money would take care of that for me. I was so excited and thinking about what I could do with the money.

Tomorrow I am supposed to recieve the rest of my money by FedEx. Peter told me that they will leave a note on the door to pick it up, if I am not home, either way I should get the check.

It sounded good to be true, so I was going to make sure this next check was not a fraud and take it to professionals. But, now knowing that the first check was not good I am filing this report with you.

I am not sure what you can do for me, but I am looking for a way to get my money back and hopefully catch the people who are involved with this scam. I have made several attempts to contact Peter back, leaving messages, and calling almost every hour of the day.

When I left a message before saying, "I have the confirmation number for western union." they did not hesitate to call me back. This is how I know they are trying to ignore me.

Any kind of response or help that you can give to me, please contact me right away. Thank you.

Anonymous
Provo, Utah
U.S.A.