FMCSA warns carriers about fraudulent DOT letter

10/1/2012 5:00:09 PM

1. The Trucker; Friday, September 28, 2012

 WASHINGTON — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Thursday warned carriers about another round of fraudulent U.S. Department of Transportation letters dated Sept. 24 were being distributed, largely by fax, to motor carrier officials.

 The letters appear to be from the DOT Procurement Office and are signed with a fictitious name Julie Weynel, who claims to be the senior procurement office.

Weynel is not an employee of the DOT, the FMCSA said.

The letters are an attempt to obtain banking information from the targeted carriers, the notice posted on the FMCSA website said.

The agency said motor carrier officials and their employees — as well as government and law enforcement officials — should be vigilant and on the lookout for fraudulent attempts to gather financial (or other personal identifiable Information – PII) data by fax, e-mail, or telephone.

Requestors should be verified and authenticated before such data is provided, the FMCSA said.

The agency provided a list of fraudulent letters that have been sent from an alleged DOT senioe procurement officers since December 2009.

Of the 37, four were signed by “Julie P. Weynel” while nine were signed by “Julie P. Wenzel.”