Portland man appears in court in fraudulent-check case

A Portland man accused of cashing more than $67,000 in fraudulent checks around the Vancouver area made a first appearance Wednesday in Clark County Superior Court.

Burt E. Wright, 62, appeared on suspicion of first-degree theft in connection with suspicious withdrawals made at various Riverview Community Bank branches in Clark County and Portland.

Shortly after 11 a.m. Tuesday, Wright entered the bank at 1220 N.E. 88th St., went to the counter and presented a check made out to him for $8,456. The bank teller was aware of several suspicious withdrawals from that account the previous day and contacted law enforcement, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Clark County sheriff’s deputies contacted Wright and learned that approximately $67,000 in suspicious withdrawals were made on that account Monday. The withdrawals were checks cashed on the account at various Riverview Community Bank branches. The amount of each check was about $5,000, the affidavit states.

Officers contacted the owner of the business associated with that account, and he said that no representative of his company authorized a check be written to Wright. The business owner became aware of the fraud earlier that morning, he said, and no checks appeared to be missing from his business. He said he doesn’t know how Wright obtained his account information or produced a check, according to court documents.

Wright would not provide information about the scheme or any co-conspirators, court records said.

During his appearance, Judge David Gregerson appointed Wright an attorney and set bail at $25,000.

He will be arraigned April 5.