Separation agreement scam using the name Miwa Gorou
Description of Potential Fraud:
Two Ontario firms notified us that they received an email from the purported Miwa Gorou looking to retain them with regards to a collecting overdue payments resulting from a separation agreement.
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 email sent by the fraudster to the lawyer:
From: Miwa Gorou [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Thursday, September 04, 2014 01:16 AM Eastern Standard Time
Subject: Violation of Separation Agreement
—
Dear Counsel,
I wish to file a case against my ex-husband ( Kyou Gorou ) for failure
to complete court ordered payments of Child Support, Spousal Support,
Equitable
distribution and Medical support in our separation agreement. Kindly
respond to confirm your readiness to assist. I live in Japan.
I am earnestly waiting for your reply through my private email:
[email protected]
Warmest Regards,
Miwa Gorou.
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.
September 08, 2014 at 3:07 am, luigi cardillo said:
Dear Sirs,
I am an Italian lawyer and just today I received the same message above mentioned by you.
Thank you for your website and your precius information.
Best Regards
Avv. Luigi Cardillo
September 08, 2014 at 10:45 am, Barbara Spinella said:
I am an Italian layer, based in Milan and I practice in family law.
I have received today, September 8, an email with the same content you have exposed and the same names.
I ask for more information and I received some new information about the case but not the separation file …
I have the emails inf you need them.
Thank you very much for your so precious information!!!
Regards
avv. Barbara Spinella
September 09, 2014 at 2:55 pm, Att. Mercado said:
We have also received this email. Thank you for posting the information here for all to see and find.
September 12, 2014 at 11:12 am, Edilberto López said:
I am a mexican lawyer and I just received the mail we are talking about. I ask for more information and I received new information about the case but not the separation file. Today I received an email from the “husband”.
Regards.
Edilberto López
October 02, 2014 at 11:38 am, Francisco José Contreras Vaca said:
Soy abogado mexicano y el 28 de septiembre de 2014 recibí un correo de la supuesta Miwa Gorou en los mismos términos a los que señalan. El día de hoy también recibí el correo del supuesto marido
October 06, 2014 at 2:34 pm, Gabriel Cardozio said:
Im a Venezuelan Lawyer. I live and work in my country. Today 6 of Octuber at 1:30pm , I recived the exact same mail you describe inbyour above text. Thank you.
October 07, 2014 at 9:53 am, Guillermo Avila said:
I am a mexican lawyer, and I have receive the email and the mail from the husband.
What should I do?
October 08, 2014 at 10:20 am, TimLemieux said:
Best to just ignore the emails.
October 11, 2014 at 1:03 am, Marlyn Polo said:
Escribo desde Panamá, mi firma tambien fue contactada por esta o estas personas. Tengo todos los documentos que me llegaron y las direcciones de correos electrónicos, las cuales les voy a remitir al correo que indican. Gracias por la información.
October 18, 2014 at 10:13 am, maria gabriela valladares said:
Soy abogada de Costa Rica y también recibí el correo … incluso cuando les pedí el formulario KYC la supuesta Miwa me mandó una supuesta copia del pasaporte.
Si necesitan algo de mi parte para evitar que sigan con este fraude cuenten conmigo. Enviaré copia de lo que tengo al correo indicado.
November 07, 2014 at 2:09 pm, silvio de candia tempone said:
Soy abogado en Malaga y hace dos dias me llego dicho e.mail. Al principio le conteste y pense que mi pagina web funcionaba muy bien. ahora poniendo en google el nombre del ex marido me ha salido vuestra pagina web, avisando del fraude. Si teneis mas informaciones me gustaria recibirla.
Dear Counsel,
I wish to file a case against my ex-husband ( Kyou Gorou ) for failure to complete
court ordered payments of Child Support, Spousal Support, Equitable
distribution and Medical support in our separation agreement. Kindly
respond to confirm your readiness to assist.
I am earnestly waiting for your reply through my private email: [email protected]
Warmest Regards,
Miwa Gorou.
December 09, 2014 at 6:28 pm, Diego said:
Soy abogado de Mendoza Argentina, me llego el mismo correo, lo primero que me sorprendió es que estuve un mes sin contestarlo, y me dijo gracias por su pronta respuesta, así es que decidí buscar en google el nombre del Marido que supuestamente Reside en “mi jurisdicción” y llegue a este foro. Gracias a todos y saludos