The First State Bank & Trust Co., Larned, Kansas, has contacted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to report that counterfeit items referred to as "Original Financial Instruments" bearing the institution's name are in circulation. These counterfeit items are associated with a scam involving a letter that directs the recipient to send an e-mail to a verification department at vaset@consultant.com after "depositing the cheque at your bank stating the availability of funds." The remitter displayed on the counterfeit items is Vaseta Financial Brokers.

The counterfeit items are very similar to authentic "Original Financial Instruments" and display the routing number 101101992, which is assigned to The First State Bank & Trust Co. However, beneath the dollar amount line, the counterfeit items display the following statement: "This document has a multi- color background; absence of these features will indicate a copy." A toll-free telephone number, which is not associated with the bank, is displayed in the top-center portion beneath the bank's logo, name and location.

Authentic checks display the following statement beneath the dollar amount line: "This document has a multi-color background, a micro-print signature line, and a holographic foil title; absence of these features will indicate a copy."

Copies of a counterfeit item and an authentic check (VOID) are attached for your review. Be aware that the appearance of counterfeit items can be modified and that additional variations may be presented.

Any information you have concerning this matter should be brought to the attention of:

Sharon Lessard
Chief Financial Officer
The First State Bank & Trust Co. of Larned
116 West 6th Street
Larned, Kansas 67550
Telephone: (620) 285-6931
Fax: (620) 285-3749
E-mail: Sharon@bankkansas.com

Information about counterfeit items, cyber-fraud incidents and other fraudulent activity may be forwarded to the FDIC's Cyber-Fraud and Financial Crimes Section, 550 17th Street, N.W., Room F- 4004, Washington, D.C. 20429, or transmitted electronically to alert@fdic.gov. Information related to federal deposit insurance or consumer issues should be submitted to the FDIC using an online form that can be accessed at http://www2.fdic.gov/starsmail/index.asp.

For your reference, FDIC Special Alerts may be accessed from the FDIC's website at www.fdic.gov/news/news/SpecialAlert/2006/index.html. To learn how to automatically receive FDIC Special Alerts through e-mail, please visit www.fdic.gov/about/subscriptions/index.html.

Attachment (not available electronically)

NOTE: As a security precaution, the FDIC does not post to its Web site electronic images of fraudulent items or authentic checks that have been counterfeited. This is to avoid attempts by others to use these instruments to facilitate additional fraud. Financial institutions can view images of the fraudulent items and authentic checks (marked as VOID) using the FDIC's free, secure Web site, FDICconnect. (See more information about FDICconnect at http://www.fdic.gov/news/news/financial/2006/fil06032.html.) Printed copies of each Special Alert and its attachment(s) may also be obtained from the FDIC's Public Information Center (telephone: 1-877-275-3342 or 703-562-2200; fax: 703-562-2296; or e-mail: publicinfo@fdic.gov).

Distribution: FDIC-Supervised Banks (Commercial and Savings)