COLUMBUS, Ga. – A 19-year-old man has been arrested after allegedly depositing more than $545,000 in counterfeit checks into a Synovus Bank account using mobile banking, authorities say.
William Chadwick Jones was taken into custody this week following a joint investigation by the Columbus Police Department’s Property Crimes Unit and Johns Creek Police, where Jones resides.
Detectives say Jones opened a business account with Synovus Bank in January and soon after deposited five fraudulent checks totaling $545,770.97 via mobile deposit. The funds were then quickly dispersed through wire transfers, debit card transactions, and peer-to-peer payment platforms like Zelle.
According to investigators, some of the money was used to pay a criminal attorney’s retainer for a previous fraud case in Forsyth, Georgia, while a significant portion went toward purchasing a Porsche, which Jones was reportedly driving at the time of his arrest.
Though the fraudulent activity occurred in Alpharetta, the case was transferred to Columbus Police because Synovus Bank is headquartered in Columbus. Authorities worked across jurisdictions to arrest Jones without incident, and he was booked into the Muscogee County Jail, where he awaits a hearing in Recorder’s Court.
