Description of Potential Fraud:

fraud-warning

A Texas firm notified us that they received an email from the purported Rong Zhong of Hentek Electronics looking to retain them with regards to a commercial debt collection.

This appears to be a 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 purchaser (who is part of the fraud).

See our Confirmed Fraud Page for more of an explanation of how these frauds work and other names associated with it , and our Fraud Fact Sheet for a list the red flags of a bogus legal matter that is really a fraud.

Here is the initial contact email sent to the lawyer:

Dear Counsel, I want to inquire if your firm handles purchase transactions and agreements rather help us to draft a purchase agreement or A referral will be welcome if this is not your area of practice. Kindly advise regarding this issue as soon as possible. Yours Sincerely, Rong Zhong.

Mr. rong zhong’s contact information:
Email: [email protected] (preferred)
Phone: 3346901278

Replying to the email brought this response:

Thanks for your response, Our customer the target company is

Priority Packaging, Inc.
13650 TI BLVD, Suite 202
Dallas, TX 75243

We would like to know if you have conflict that will prevent you from representing our firm,
Please see attached Letter of Intent for your review and I await your retainer agreement as soon as possible.

Yours Sincerely,

Mr. Rong Zhong(President)
Hentek Electronics Co. Ltd
Unit I, Flat F1, 12/F,
Phase 1, Hang Fung
Industrial Building, 2G
Hok Yuen Street, Hunghom
Kowloon, Hong Kong

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.