Montana Nonprofit Association warns of scam targeting nonprofits

The Montana Nonprofit Association received word over the weekend that a check cashing scam has hit a number of Montana nonprofits. So far they've heard of at least five organizations targeted by the same scheme. Please be on the lookout for this scam.

It goes like this:

Organization receives an unexpected donation of around $200,000 to honor someone's late mother. Multiple orgs have said the amount the received was $191,250, and that the email came from the name Alphonso Blye.

The cashier's check looks legitimate so they cash it.

Within a few days, the same donor emails to say there has been a mistake-the donation should have been $100,000-and could the organization refund the remainder?

Meanwhile, the cashed check bounces and the organization is out $91,000.

So far, everyone who has contacted us has managed to catch the scam before falling victim to it, but with this amount of money, the scammer only needs to convince one.

What to do if you're a target:

Please be wary! DO NOT EVER send money to someone whose identity you cannot verify with 100% certainty. When in doubt: ask the donor to wait 30 days before issuing a refund. If your organization has been a target of this scam, please let us know by calling 406-449-3717, or emailing [email protected]. The MNA also ask that you report it to the Attorney General's office (File a Scam Report [mtnonprofit.us3.list-manage.com]) and the Internet Crime Complaint Center [mtnonprofit.us3.list-manage.com]. Reporting the scam will help them gather resources in case a member of the nonprofit community does fall victim and needs help recovering the $91,000.