MISHAWAKA — When Kim Rutt walked to her mailbox on a recent Thursday afternoon, she found a pleasant surprise.

The alluring envelope from GoldenStar Lotto grabbed her attention as she carried the mail back to her home. When she opened it, two words on an enclosed letter caught her eye:

"Winning Certificate."

"We are please to inform you that your name emerged as one of the winners of the GoldenStar Lotto," the letter read. "As a result you will be receiving the lump sum of $55,500.00."

Immediately, the news evoked feelings of happiness, and a hope that the 46-year-old Rutt soon would have her medical bills paid off, especially at a time when finances are tight, she said.

She could just feel the money — literally. A check for $2,755.12 was enclosed so that Rutt could use it to pay the International Clearance Fees of $2,620.32.

"It was from Florida, so I thought, ‘It wasn’t from somewhere I’ve never heard of,’" Rutt said. "I just figured it was real."

She was wrong.

She took the check to Taper Lock Credit Union in Mishawaka to deposit it and cash $100 — only to be contacted four days later and told that the check was fake. She had to pay the $100 back, she said.

Thinking she would be in trouble for passing a fake check, she also contacted the Mishawaka Police Department, after which an officer was able to take a report on the scam.

"You never think something like that would happen to you," Rutt said. "But it was a shock."

It’s a scene that has been repeating itself a lot lately as more of these types of fake check scams crop up to swindle unsuspecting consumers of their money. And it’s perking the ears of local officials who are eager to get the warning out to other residents before it’s too late.

"We’re definitely going through a very high wave now," said South Bend police Sgt. Dominic Zultanski, noting that he expects one inquiry about fake checks a day. "We’re getting quite a bit of them."

Ditto for the Better Business Bureau.

"We’re just flooded with them," said Dreama Jensen, area director for the BBB of Northern Indiana.

And the state of today’s economy, she said, likely has something to do with it.

"I think when (people are) more in need now," she said, "I think they are going to be more susceptible to these kinds of scams, and the con people know that."

Of course, you can’t blame the rash of fake check scams on the economy alone. In reality, scams have been working well even when the economy has been strong, Zultanski said. Many consumers today, he said, are simply greedy and eager to get something for nothing.

"I think if everybody had jobs, everybody was happy," Zultanski said, "everybody still would want more cash."

That’s why he reminds consumers not to be blind sided by offers that seem too good to be true.

"Anytime anybody sends you a check that you don’t know that person face to face, it’s always a fraud," Zultanski said.

And remember, it’s against the law to play a foreign lottery in the first place, he said, also warning consumers to beware of the "security features" on checks that can seem so authentic.

"They’re using check programs that you can get anywhere," Zultanski said.

The check that Rutt, the Mishawaka resident, received a couple weeks ago included the typical lock icons and a colored background. Her letter also made the lottery seem legitimate by including several details, including how all winners were selected through a computer generated ballot system drawn from 700,000 names in Asia, Europe and North America.

The letter further urged Rutt to keep her certificate confidential "for security reasons."

One thing many consumers don’t realize, Zultanski said, is that, in common fake check schemes, the crime isn’t necessarily in sending a counterfeit check — it’s depositing it or cashing it. Some consumers aren’t particularly careful when it comes to verifying the authenticity of a check, and many don’t realize they will have to face the consequences.

"They just choose to think, ‘Well, it’s somebody else’s problem — not mine,’" Zultanski said.

It’s kind of like having 10 people locked inside a room, knowing a 6-foot-tall man with a chainsaw is lurking outside, Zultanski said.

Fake checks are like that chainsaw.

"There’s always got to be that one guy that says, "I don’t hear the chainsaw, I don’t feel the chainsaw,’" he said. "Trust me, it’s there. Don’t open that door."

When you do, you’re putting others at risk.

"You’re allowing (a) whole bank to be susceptible," Zultanski said. "And our whole banking industry."