by FraudInfo

Description of Potential Fraud:

fraud-warning

A firm in New Mexico notified us that they received an email from the purported Gernot Minke of Fritz Minke GmbH & Co KG looking to retain them with regards to a commercial debt collection.

This is a classic bad cheque scam that presents as legal matter requiring the assistance of a lawyer. In this scam lawyers will be duped into wiring real funds from their trust accounts after depositing a fake cheque received as payment from the debtor (who is part of the fraud). See our Confirmed Fraud Page for more of an explanation of how these frauds work and to see other names associated with it. Our Fraud Fact Sheet lists the red flags of a bogus legal matter that is really a fraud.

Here is the initial contact email sent by the fraudster to the lawyer and subsequent reply:

From: Gernot Minke [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Tuesday, January 07, 2014 9:02 AM
To: Subject: Loan Dispute

My name is Gernot Minke, this email is in regards to our case and concerns that occured
on 2nd of June 2011 on a default loan agreement, we want your firm to represent us and
act on our behalf concerning this matter. I understand this may involve, but is not
limited to requesting copies of the documents and other pertinent informations related to
this case,

I look forward to hearing from you and the next steps in this process.
Thank you in advance.
Gernot Minke.

Replying to the email brought this response:

Thank you for your response to my inquiry for legal services, i wish to inform you that i would need your firm’s legal help to assist me. I do appreciate your time in reviewing my request, because my aim is to find a lawyer that will bring discomfort to the party on the other side of the lawsuit, We believe the key is finding a successful lawyer that is known for getting deals done, one that is respected by many different people that have opposing positions.

{Hanger, Inc.};
435 St. Michael’s Drive, Bldg. C
Santa Fe, NM 87505

This Borrower is a company i have known for years now and have done business with in the past, without any issues. They requested a loan from my company, due to the past relationship we have had on business dealings. The amount loaned was $4,850,000.00USD {3,648,966.09 EUR)with a two years interest rate amounting to the total of $5,456,007.46USD. They have made payment three times of $4,825,000.00USD out of a total amount, the balance of $631,007.46USD is still outstanding till date, even though promises have been made that they would pay the balance.In this email you will find attached payment copies, email correspondence, and agreement backing the loan for your perusal.am prepared to pay a reasonable amount to settle our claim. as soon as i gets to review the terms of your legal agreement, you can have it faxed or emailed to my attention .am also prepared for a formal lawsuit to be filed. If Hanger Company. fails to comply. Note any documents revealed in this mail should be confidential if your services are not engaged

We would like you to tell us more about your services.

• Which of the court in the United States would be appropriate to file for law suits?
• How many matters have you handled in the past years?
• We would like to know your fee structure in details first, as we don’t want any confusion in relating to payments.
• We would also like to know if you will be handling the case yourself as most attorneys handled their cases to junior attorneys.
What kind of background or experience do you have in this specific area?
We would like know your means/advice of alternative dispute solution on the case?

I would be waiting to hear from you.

Best Regards,
Gernot Minke

——-

Managing Director:
Fritz Minke GmbH & Co KG
Cecilienstraße 31
47051 Duisburg, Germany.
Lenken-Telefonnummer : +49 (0) 203 4516 0956
Faxnummer: +49 (0) 203 286 1285
Registernummer: HRA 1482
Umsatzsteuer-Identifikationsnummer:
DE 119 562 277

How to handle a real or suspected fraud

If you have been targeted by any of these frauds, please forward any of the emails and supporting documents that you have received to [email protected].

If you suspect you are acting on a matter that might be a fraud, call LAWPRO at 1-800-410-1013 (416-598-5899). We will talk you through the common fraud scenarios we are seeing and help you spot red flags that may indicate you are being duped. This will help you ask appropriate questions of your client to determine if the matter is legitimate or not. If the matter you are acting on turns out to be a fraud and there is a potential claim, we will work with you to prevent the fraud and minimize potential claims costs.

If you have been successfully duped, please immediately notify LAWPRO as there may be a claim against you.

For more immediate updates on fraud and claims prevention, subscribe to the email or RSS feed updates from LAWPRO’s AvoidAClaim blog.

Fraud Fact Sheet More fraud prevention information and resources are available on the practicePRO Fraud page, including the Fraud Fact Sheet, a handy reference for lawyers and law firm staff that describes the common frauds and the red flags that can help identify them.