https://www.thebaltimorebanner.com/politics-power/local-government/fake-vendor-baltimore-city-fbi-6H3FEECYS5A3JNK2BMOMCXWNTY/
https://comptroller.baltimorecity.gov/news/press-release-comptroller/2025-04-01-release-office-comptroller-statement-vendor-fraud-incident
Baltimore officials are scrambling to institute new safeguards to the city’s payment system after more than $1.5 million was stolen by a person pretending to be a vendor who redirected city funds to their own bank account. The fraud, which has since been reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the city’s inspector general, was first flagged in March by a bank that received two large payments from the city — one for $803,000 and a second for $721,000. The account was subsequently frozen that month and the second payment reversed. However, the $803,000 payment, cashed in February, has not been recovered, said Erika McClammy, the city’s deputy comptroller. City officials do not know who is behind the sophisticated scheme, which involved months of email correspondence between city officials and the unknown person who was posing as an employee of the vendor. McClammy said the person first contacted city finance officials in October or November. After four months of contact, the person switched the bank account used by the vendor and provided proper documentation such as voided checks and the company’s tax identification number, McClammy said. …
Regards