by FraudInfo

Date First Reported: May 2015

Primary Name Associated: T Hari Sankar

Description of Potential Fraud:

fraud-warning

Three Ontario lawyers have notified us that they’ve received emails from the purported “Yati” (or T Hari Sankar, or Yati Dini Hari) looking to retain them with regard to a breach of contract. This is a variant of the basic bad cheque scam in which the aim is to have a counterfeit cheque deposited in the lawyer’s trust account and good money disbursed to the fraudsters. As with business loan frauds where the debtor miraculously agrees to pay up right away, in this scam the ‘customer’ accused of breaching the contract will no doubt also quickly send a (counterfeit) cheque for damages to the lawyers office, and the lawyer will be asked to wire the funds (minus fees and costs) to an offshore account.

Here is an example of the initial contact email:

From: T Hari Sankar 4-Yr B.Tech. Electrical Engg. [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: May-18-15 1:53 AM To: undisclosed-recipients: Subject: RE:

I would like your advice regarding a possible representation on a litigation case concerning a breach of contract/collection matters. I believe that the matter is within your jurisdiction which is why I?m requesting your legal advice.

After a review of your firms profile as well as your experience, I am of the opinion that your are qualified to provide the legal services as requested.

Kindly reply, so I may provide any additional information.

Regards,

Yati

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.

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Fraud Fact SheetMore 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.