needing some help

So I was contacted by a guy named Michael Harvey about a loan he stated he was an investor in Canada and would be able to help me with a loan. I know what a scam looks like and until today it seemed legit. He stated he was going to fly to the area for a meeting. When he was arranging this he sent me an email stating he needed to get an apartment as he would be doing business but the owner would not allow payment from someone outside us. So he sais he would send me the money to pay him. I told him I would need to meet him to make sure it was legit and he said no prob this morning 3000 was deposited into my account from check n go loan under the name Michael Bailey. Then he said I need to send half by western union and half money gram to his agent in California since he was out of the country on business. I refused and told him that I would not proceed until the money had fully cleared and I could speak with the owner of the home I have not heard back yet but I need to know if anyone has dealt with him or know of this

Welcome to Scamwarners kjax744.

Your reaction to be cautious is very sensible. Let me research and see if I can turn anything up.

Apart from anything else, the stated source of the funds may suggest he could have made a loan in your name. I can't say this for sure, but it's a possibility.

Don't send the money anywhere, and certainly not by Western Union.

Yep that's what it looks like he's done.

Check 'n Go look like a legitimate payday loan company and the only reason you'd get a payment from them is if someone's applied for a loan using your details.

http://www.checkngo.com

Don't pay the money on to anyone, as you'll be expected to repay it, and payday loan companies have the tools to ensure you do. If the loan's in your name, as I'm sure it is, there's no argument.

You need to contact the company to get the matter fixed urgently and review what information you've given this person. I'm sure that the last thing you need is more debt (who does ?) but that's all you'll get from this person. I suspect that this won't be the last time we see this type of scam attempted. In the UK a similar version netted scammers more than a million pounds. Be very cautious over who you give your personal financial details to.

One detail that concerns me is that this payday loan company advertises a maximum loan of $1,500 and you've received double that amount. Whether you've received two loans, or another type of loan I can't tell, but it would be something to investigate. They also offer check cashing services. Even if you welcome the loan, you don't know what he may have said to the lender to persuade them to make the loan.

Do NOT touch that money if you do not want to end up in jail.

The apartment story is just plain ridiculous. If a landlord is willing to rent to someone he has never met who is not currently in the country (and there are few landlords that will do that), and he accepts WU or MG (again, not common) he won't care if a WU or MG payment is sent from outside the country or within the country, because once he picks it up, it can't be reversed anyway.
If he wants a face-to-face meeting before signing a lease (most landlords will want this), having the money sent by a third party wouldn't resolve the problem.

So let's ignore the bizarre storyline and just look at the details.

1) someone you have only met by email has transferred money into your bank account.
2) The money is in the name of a different person you have never met (I assume that is not your name, though if it is your name, as Terrance suggested the loans may be as well.)
3) The money supposedly comes from a payday loan service that you did NOT apply to.
4) you have been instructed to take this money and transfer it to yet another name via untraceable means.

This is textbook money laundering. You are being used to take money that has been obtained by fraud (possibly by payday loans taken out using an unknowing person's details--it happens all the time) and forward that money to make it available to the thieves. And when the fraudulent transaction is discovered, you will be the one left holding the bag.

Contact the fraud department of your bank, explain the situation, and let them investigate the source of the money.