<prompt> Human: So, heres the story inb4 Im an idiot: Ive been trying to sublet my apartment in Boston, and I have two separate ads posted. One day a girl texts me saying Hey I was referred to you by a friend who says youre subletting your apartment. Entirely plausible, Ive been in contact with numerous people who liked my place but didnt end up taking it. I give her my email. She sends me an email saying that once we get the details of the lease worked out, she will send me a check. Apparently she wants to work in the US, shes already secured a job, and her employer will pay for everything. She mentioned something about her flight arrangements but I didnt think much of it at the time. She eventually returns both my sublet contract and the guarantors form that my landlord requires, signed and filled out. The guarantors form is filled out with a SSN, name, address, everything. Ive also received a check for the rent in the mail. Heres whats weird: its for more than I told her was due for the first months rent. I mention this to her, and she tells me that she needs me to transfer the money to her travel agent to pay for her travel arrangements after I subtract first months rent. I went ahead and deposited the check. Next day, the check appears to have cleared. Being the idiot I am, I went ahead and made the transfer for her. As far as I was concerned, her details had checked out. The check cleared! What could go wrong? Well, last night my bank removed those funds from my account, saying that there was potentially something wrong with the check. Today, the bank told me that the check bounced. Ive talked to an associate at the bank, and they said that the check didnt clear but instead they just credited my account with the amount of the deposit after a day. This isnt reflected in my account, it just says that I made a deposit and that the money was in my account. Im still not clear on why the deposits status says cleared but that doesnt necessarily mean the bank did anything wrong. So Im essentially out for the amount that I sent to the fraudulent account. Ive already alerted my bank that the check is fraudulent, and Ive filed a report at my local police station. The police said to go to their headquarters tomorrow and I should be able to talk to a detective. That about brings us up to speed. Ive been informed of the rather obvious option of pursuing the people, if they can be identified and found, in small claims court. If the detectives find them then I will certainly do that. If theres any other advice people have to offer, especially regarding the confusing issue with the bank and the cleared but not actually cleared check, I would love to hear it. Other miscellaneous details: Girl who wanted to rent my place claims to be Spanish While she wanted to rent from me in Boston, the account I wired some of the money to is in Texas. Edit 1: Fortunately the amount I now owe to my bank is slightly less than the amount I currently have saved, so this has been more of a horrible learning experience than a ruin me forever experience. Edit 2: I now have a RETURNED ITEM CHARGEBACK FEE on my bank account. If Im understanding that correctly, that means my bank is charging me because I deposited a bounced check. Is that correct? It doesnt appear to be an overdraft fee.  <response>: Sorry to hear. This is a fairly common scam. Google overpayment scam. Checks can take up to 6 weeks to legitimately clear which is what makes this scam successful. Theres very little chance of catching the person so dont consume yourself with it. 