Fraudulent payroll checks bearing the business name Phoenix Farms are circulating around the Sturgis area. Some checks have been cashed, leading police to urge businesses to verify checks with banks before casing payroll checks.
Michigan State Police-White Pigeon Post and Sturgis Police are investigating the cases where suspects, all Hispanic, have cashed fraudulent checks.
The suspects are using a permanent resident card for ID. At one location, suspects were seen in an older model brown car, possibly a Chevy Impala.
Anyone with information about the checks or suspects is asked to call Michigan State Police Trooper Aaron Steensma at 269-483-7611 or Sturgis Police central dispatch at 269-467-4195.
