A Southern California bakery owner is warning other business owners after she was targeted in an elaborate counterfeit check scam.
Loria Stern, the owner of Eat Your Flowers bakery in Highland Park, has been running her business for 12 years. Throughout that time, Stern said she’s seen her fair share of scams, but this latest scheme truly surprised her.
It began in early August when she was contacted by email asking for an order of 1,000 cupcakes.
The scammer, someone named “Zoe Madison,” said she didn’t want to pay with a credit card or through mobile payment apps, so she sent a check for $7,560 instead.
When Sterns cashed the check at the bank, it initially cleared so she began working on the large cupcake order.
“There were a lot of specific details in the emails going back and forth with her that really made me believe that this order …