A valley job seeker is almost duped out of thousands of dollars.
"It's really deceiving and it's bad when you're out there trying to find a job in Las Vegas. It's hard enough trying to find a job," said Thomas Manzi, who claims he was almost a victim of a scam.
Manzi thought he found a warehouse job on Craigslist. He was hired over the phone. Then he got a $2,500 dollar check from a Darren Haynes.
Manzi was told to keep some of the money for himself and deposit the rest into a special work account. He went to his normal bank. When they raised some red flags, he went to the issuing bank written on the check.
"It wastes your time. It wastes your energy and then you get to the point where you're just sitting there and you want to pull your hair out," said Manzi.
He drove all around town only to be told the check was bogus.
If he had deposited it at his usual bank and put money into the special work account, he'd have used his own money. The error wouldn't be discovered until later.
Manzi reached out to 13 Action News to warn others.
"I know it's happened to people all over the world and it's not right," said Manzi.
Manzi was fortunate, but here's what you can do: Research your employer online and call them at the number on their website. Police say anyone can print checks on official-looking paper.
