A man wearing medical scrubs walked into Diamond Credit Union’s Spring Township office on May 20 and attempted to deposit a $2.2 million U.S. Treasury check into a newly opened business account tied to a Florida community health center.
The check was legitimate, but nearly everything else about the transaction was not, investigators said.
The check was payable to Banyan Community Health Center Inc., a South Florida nonprofit medical services provider, in care of the person who is the chief financial officer. The customer identified himself using the CFO’s name but later proved to be using an alias, investigators said.
Credit union management flagged the transaction as suspicious due to the size of the check and the recent creation of the account.
Their concerns were justified.
According to investigators, all of the information the man provided was false except for the check, which had apparently been intercepted in the mail before reaching Banyan.
A week later, the suspect — identified as 51‑year‑old David Dar, who has no permanent address — was arrested by Wyomissing police after investigators said he attempted a similar fraud at First National Bank, 2117 State Hill Road. He was committed to Berks County Jail in lieu of a total of $400,000 bail following arraignment Wednesday night before District Judge Steven M. Chieffo in Reading Central Court.
Dar faces felony counts of identity theft, access device fraud and forgery in both cases. In the Spring Township incident, he is additionally charged with mail theft and receiving stolen property.
Investigators provided this account in court records:
After the failed attempt to deposit the Treasury check at Diamond, Dar left the Spring Township branch and was last seen walking toward the nearby Patient First clinic, carrying a paper coffee cup believed to be from a nearby hotel.
Diamond management contacted Spring Township police and launched an internal fraud review. Investigators learned that the account had been opened May 8 at Diamond’s Cumru Township office by a man who identified himself as the Banyan employee named on the check.
When officials reviewed security footage, they noted the man opening the account was wearing the same clothing as the individual who attempted the $2.2 million deposit 12 days later.
The man had provided an Exton business address that investigators determined was actually a residential property with no connection to Banyan.
Treasury verification confirmed the check was genuine, had been issued to Banyan and had not been negotiated.
Discovery compliant personnel contacted Banyan’s chief financial officer in Doral, Fla., who confirmed the organization was expecting a Treasury check that never arrived. Investigators concluded it had been stolen before delivery.
Authorities distributed bulletins and surveillance images nationwide. Multiple agencies responded, identifying the suspect as Dar, who is believed to have ties to the Orlando, Fla., area.
Local police did not have to search very far for him. Around 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, Dar entered First National Bank’s Wyomissing office and attempted to withdraw $37,000 from an account belonging to a New York City medical practice.
Bank staff, already on alert due to a previous fraudulent transaction involving Dar at another First National location, stalled him under the pretense of verifying account information and called Wyomissing police.
Officers escorted Dar to a private room and asked for identification. He produced a Florida ID — different from the South Carolina identification he had used earlier. When officers attempted to confiscate his wallet, he resisted and was handcuffed.
Inside the wallet, police found a Truist bank card bearing the name David Dar and a forged check for $132,069 from the same New York medical practice. The bank’s security department had already alerted branches after Dar deposited a washed $250,000 check on May 8 at the Muhlenberg Township branch, the same day he opened the account at the Wyomissing office using the South Carolina ID.
Dar also faces misdemeanor counts of mail theft, receiving stolen property and theft by deception.