Farmers And Merchants Bank

A scam plaguing Farmers & Merchants Bank customers earlier this year seems to have stopped.Bank marketing director Laura Meixelberger said calls from customers reporting the scam have ceased.

Phone calls, e-mails and text messages had been received from sources identifying themselves as "Farmers National Bank of Emlenton" and "Farmers & Merchants Bank" asking for account information.The bank was fielding about 15 to 20 calls every day regarding the scam earlier this year, but the scam has stopped being reported, she said.But bank workers are not free from scammers attempting to get customers' money, Meixelberger said."Now we've been seeing more people trying to cash counterfeit checks," she said.The scam is not specific to Farmers and Merchants Bank -- anyone can receive a check, cash it and unknowingly allow a scammer access to their bank account.

The checks appear to be from real banks with valid checking and routing numbers, Meixelberger said.The checks usually come with an announcement letting the recipient know they've won a contest, asking that the check be deposited with the recipient told to send some of the money back to the source, she said.The bank has trained employees to recognize such checks, she said, and another scam going around in the area -- counterfeit money.

The quality of fake bills has evolved, she said, and sometimes can appear shiny or slippery.The bank has contacted local police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation regarding the counterfeit money.Anyone receiving phone calls, e-mails or text messages from someone identifying itself as a bank with a name similar to Farmers & Merchants asking for account information should call the bank at 724-543-1125 or 888-302-1969.A financial institution will never contact its customers asking for a username, password, account number or PIN because they already have that information, Meixelberger said.More Leader Times headlinesResidents, groups rally around the FC library Reddinger won't get a trial Kittanning Twp.

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