by FraudInfo

Date First Reported: May 2014

Primary Name Associated: Ronald Rempe

Description of Potential Fraud:

fraud-warning

A Texas firm notified us that they received an email from the purported Ronald Rempe of Shores Manufacturinglooking 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:

On Thu, Apr 17, 2014 at 9:07 AM, Shores Manufacturing CO [email protected] wrote:

Dear Counsel,

We request for your legal services and possible representation on a
litigation matter involving Shores Manufacturing CO. and a client in
your jurisdiction. Please, do let me know if your office is currently
accepting new clients. I look forward to a prompt response from you.
Sincerely,

Ronald Rempe

President.

Shores Manufacturing CO
30256 Gloede Drive
Warren, MI 48088

Replying to the email brought this response:

I am in receipt of your email. We are currently under severe pressure from our Supplier to pay up the balance funds that we owe to them. This debt that we Owe to our Supplier came as a result of an outstanding payment for goods that we supplied to KOCH MACHINE TOOL CO. INC. 8500 Westland West Blvd Houston, TX 77041, valued at 198,750.00.(One Hundred and Ninety Eight Thousand, Seven Hundred Fifty Dollars). The said outstanding payment was for goods delivered in good condition. Due date for the payment was the 31st of March, 2014 as stipulated in our supplier’s invoice.
Please, do carry out a conflict check on my debtor and also let me know about your fee structure and rates.
We will like to draw your attention to the relationship with our customer which has been cordial and we have had successful business relationship over the past few years, and it is in our position to maintain this relationship after collection of the outstanding sum owed to us.
Do not hesitate to call me if you have any questions.
I look forward to a timely response from you.
Sincerely,
Ronald Rempe
President
SHORES MANUFACTURING CO.
30256 Gloede Drive
Warren, MI 48088.
Direct Tel: (586) 270-0008
Fax: (586) 943-6044

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. Instructions on how to report a claim are here.

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.