Have you ever been in a position where no one seems to believe you no matter how hard you tried convincing them? Paul McCowns was recently in such a position when he visited a bank to cash his paycheck and he was passed through multiple security checks just to validate the authenticity of his check.
McCowns recounts his experience saying he visited a branch of Huntington to cash his first paycheck for his new job. By the way, he works for an electric company. As soon as he presented the check worth over a thousand dollars he was required to provide two different IDs and his fingerprint. The standard procedure for a person not operating an account with the bank.
Upon satisfying all the conditions the bank officials still sought to speak to McCowns’ employer to verify that he actually worked there and was paid the said amount. Efforts to reach his employer proved abortive and so he couldn’t cash the check.
No sooner had McCowns stepped into his truck did a police cruiser cut him off, asking him to step out of the vehicle and subsequently cuffing him. Apparently one of the bank employees had informed the police of the situation at hand which caused McCowns’ arrest.
McCowns was later released after his employer had confirmed that he worked for the company and the amount on the check was actually his pay. The bank have issued an official apology to McCown saying they accept responsibility for the police situation. McCown has since cashed his check at another branch of the bank.
The branch said in their defense that they had experienced 11 of such frauds in recent times and that was the reason for the employees being so cautious. McCowns has requested that the bank issue a proper apology for racial profiling and all the employees involved be held accountable.
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