Asked 7/20/2016 – Houston, TX

A friend of mine, who owes me $1000 from back in 2007, finally gave me a check for $1100 this May, 2016. He moved to Texas by the way with new ownership of his shop now. Check was written from his shop check not the personal check. However, he told me not to cash the check and this has been going on since I received the check. I gave him due date of July 8th and If I don’t receive the money, then he will have to sign the promissory note which includes $100 penalty every 15 days if I don’t received the money by then. However, he’s been ignored my messages regards the payment and I can’t keep digging into my saving account to pay my own bills. Therefore, I deposit the check and it’s now on HOLD.
I would like to know if this is a fraud and what’s the penalty for my used to be a friend’s action?

Answer

Writing a bad check is not fraud…it’s writing a bad check. The check has not been returned by your friend’s bank yet, but if it is, you can contact the local District Attorney’s office about filing a criminal complaint.