Peoples Bank of Louisiana, Amite, Louisiana, has contacted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to report that counterfeit cashier's checks bearing the institution's name are in circulation. The counterfeit items are reportedly associated with letters from Sentinel Financial Trust Services, Nassau, Bahamas, and International Processing Center, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Counterfeit items display the routing number 065403477, which is assigned to Peoples Bank of Louisiana. Counterfeit items are similar to authentic cashier's checks. However, counterfeit items display a security statement embedded in the top border, whereas authentic checks display a security statement below the dollar amount line.

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:

LaShawn Smith
Administrative Officer
or
Russell Conger
President and Chief Executive Officer

Peoples Bank of Louisiana
P. O. Box 669
201 West Oak Street
Amite, Louisiana 70422
Telephone: (985) 748-9476
Fax: (985) 748-5278
E-mail: lsmith@pbla.net
E-mail: rconger@pbla.net

To report this scam or any other scam based in or mailed from Canada, please contact Phonebusters, which is a joint partnership between the Ontario Provincial Police and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Phonebusters is interested in receiving copies of scam letters, particularly those involving Canadian mailing addresses or telephone numbers. Records relating to the payment of advance fees should also be forwarded to Phonebusters. This information is used to assist in the strategic targeting of would-be fraudsters. Scam letters should be forwarded to the Phonebusters National Call Center (PNCC) as follows:

Mail:	Box 686 North Bay, Ontario, Canada P1B 8J8
Web site:	www.phonebusters.com
Telephone:	+1 (888) 495-8501 (toll-free in Canada and the USA)
Fax:	+1 (888) 654-9426 (toll-free in Canada and the USA)
E-mail:	info@phonebusters.com
Advance fee fraud (including Nigerian and lottery letters): wafl@phonebusters.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/2007/index.html. To learn how to automatically receive FDIC Special Alerts through e-mail, please visit www.fdic.gov/about/subscriptions/index.html.

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Distribution: FDIC-Supervised Banks (Commercial and Savings)