Can Someone Please Help Me?

After reading through this forum i have now realised that I have been scammed.
I fell for the cheque scam, and I cashed the cheque and now I am afraid the law will come and arrest me and throw me in jail.
Who do I report this to?
When i realised what had happened I closed my email account to avoid any further contact with the scammer. I now realise i should have left it active so i could get the details from the emails.
I've been so naieve, can anyone offer advice on what I should do now?
Thanks guys

Immediately notify both your bank and your local law enforcement that you believe you have been the target of a fake check scam.

Had you already wired the money to the scammer?

To add to what Tom said:

OK, first off, do you still have the money from the cheque or have you sent it off already? If you still have the cash, deposit it into your account ASAP to cover the cheque when it bounces.

If you have sent the money off and cannot cover the cheque, you are going to need to go to your bank and discuss what happened with the manager (not a teller). The sooner you do this, the better, preferably before the cheque comes back.

Can you give us a few more details about what happened? It will be easier to help if we know how you were approached and the sequence of events.

Immediately notify both your bank and your local law enforcement that you believe you have been the target of a fake check scam.

Had you already wired the money to the scammer?

I haven't sent the money, I realised, (in the nick of time) that the cheque is possibly stolen or fake and I send the cash and then i have to pay it back to whoever's money it is, by which time the scammer has long gone.

OK, this is VERY good! First thing in the morning, go to the bank and deposit the cash in your account. Talk to the manager and tell him/her that you think the cheque will bounce. As long as the money is put back into the account to cover the bounced cheque, you should be fine with the bank.

I registered with a jobs site, shortly after I received the emails saying I could earn 10% of the cheques.
I'm scared now, did I do fraud?

OK, this is VERY good! First thing in the morning, go to the bank and deposit the cash in your account. Talk to the manager and tell him/her that you think the cheque will bounce. As long as the money is put back into the account to cover the bounced cheque, you should be fine with the bank.

Thanks for your help, the cheque has cleared and I transfered it to another account to get ready to transfer it via Western Union, and then realised after speaking with my husband that it is possibly a stolen or fake cheque and if I sent the money, the person whose money it is would realise, I would then have the police onto me and have to pay it all back myself. It's £3500 by the way.

I'm so sick with worry that I am a criminal, I'm also embarassed about being so thick!
What will happen to me?

You didn't intentionally commit fraud and you aren't a criminal. You were the victim of a scam, like many many other people. The good thing is that you realized what was happening in time, and can now put things right. The bank's interest will largely be the money, and you have that covered. Banks are very familiar with this type of scam, and they will know exactly what you are talking about. Be calm and straightforward about what happened with the bank manager, and let them know up front that you have the funds to cover the cheque.

Victims of this type of fraud mostly get in trouble when they have sent the money and can't cover the cheque. I think you will be just fine.

Victims of this type of fraud mostly get in trouble when they have sent the money and can't cover the cheque. I think you will be just fine.

But the cheque has cleared, what's the next stage? How did the cheque clear, I don't understand that part, how did a Nigerian/African get a hold of a british cheque?(Am I right in assuming the cheque was stolen?) It's puzzling me?

You might want to file a police report about the incident as well, documenting that you were targeted by a scammer. If you choose to do so, take a copy with you to the bank.

I'll also add that coming forward with what happened before the cheque comes back will show that you are the victim here, and not a criminal.

But the cheque has cleared, what's the next stage? How did the cheque clear, I don't understand that part, how did a Nigerian/African get a hold of a british cheque?(Am I right in assuming the cheque was stolen?) It's puzzling me?

The cheque didn't actually clear. You were given provisional access to the money by the bank. Most banks will give account holders provisional access to the funds from a deposited cheque, because the actual clearing process can take weeks or even months. This is what makes these scams possible.

As for the cheque itself, it is most likely forged rather than stolen. Some of these scammers have access to expert forgeries that easily fool the first inspection by the bank. That said, it may have been stolen but that is a bit less likely.

You might want to file a police report about the incident as well, documenting that you were targeted by a scammer. If you choose to do so, take a copy with you to the bank.

I'll also add that coming forward with what happened before the cheque comes back will show that you are the victim here, and not a criminal.

Thanks, i agree, I will contact the bank in the morning and the police. I'm still scared though, of the embarrassment of being so stupid!
The company luckily I remember is supposidly www.cheapfabrics.co.uk so I will be giving them a call tommorow too.

My bank took the full seven days to clear it?
So you're saying in a few weeks it will come back uncleared again?

So I would have been in debt to the bank for £3500 somwhere down the line! Phew

I've done a whois on that web address but I can't tell if it's genuine, it looks real to me?
I don't know a lot about that stuff, just bits and pieces. Do you know anything about that sort of thing?