by FraudInfo

Date First Reported: January 2012

Primary Name Associated: Wang Chung

Description of Potential Fraud:

fraud-warning

An Ontario lawyer notified us that they have been contacted by the purported Wang Chung with regards to a divorce settlement agreement. This is a fraud we have seen before under several other names and similar scenarios, but what’s new in this case is that it is a husband pursuing the wife for support. For details on how this fraud works and a full list of names attached to it see our Confirmed Fraud page.

Here is an example of the initial email:

From: Wang Shun
To:
Sent: Mon Dec 26 22:52:15 2011
Subject: Inquiry from DivorceMag.com

I am Wang Shun and I am presently facing a divorce problem with my ex wife please I would like to retain your firm for this case/matter. Kindly get back to me as Asap so that I can furnish you with further details regarding the situation.

Yours Sincerely,

Mr. Wang Shun

[email protected]

When the lawyer replied he got this response:

From: Wang Shun [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Monday, January 09, 2012 6:30 PM
To: lawyer_name
Subject: RE: Inquiry from DivorceMag.com

I am delighted to inform you that I received a message from my wife Naoki Shun that she have issued a pay of $350,000.00 to your firm as a part of the money owed to me to avoid court action brought against her and to pay the balance $$150,000 by the January 30, 2012

The payment was made in bank draft/certified cheque as I was informed that the funds would be made available upon deposit. we both have a collaborative agreement which I shall forward to you upon your request.

However, you will have your retainer fee or contingency deducted from this sum,

Regards

Mr. Wang Shun

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 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.