Cheque thefts worry police

Press, 12 September 1980, Page 4

Cheque thefts worry police

The upsurge in the number of cheque book thefts has alarmed the Christchurch police fraud squad. Between 25 and 30 stolen cheque books are at present in the hands of. criminals in the city, according to the head of the fraud squad (Detective Senior-Sergeant R. G. Carson). “Every second day another book is reported stolen. The thefts have rocketed in the .last few weeks, for some reason,” he said. The cheques were being used to buy anything from motor-vehicles for “cash” to groceries. From one book reported stolen yesterday morning, the police found that a single cheque for $2BOO had been written against the rightful owner’s account. “The series of cheques from stolen books usually amount to hundreds and often thousands of dol-

lars,” said Detective Sen-ir-Sergeant Carson. He appealed to businessmen and the owners of the cheque books to take much more care in the face of the wave of thefts, “because this is the only way to beat the problem.” “Retailers must take a shrewd look at anyone who pays by cheque. They should demand full identification — not just a driver’s licence — and check the customer’s signature,” said Detective ior-Sergeant Carson. “The golden rule is for retailers to ask themselves whether they would be able to identify the person later and take the police to his address, should the cheque bounce. If they cannot, they should never take the cheque,” he said. Detective ‘ Senior-Ser-geant Carson said businessmen should also be wary of juveniles or persons under the influence of liquor or drugs who tried to pay for goods by cheque.