JACKSON, Miss. (Legal Newsline) – A Jackson, Mississippi law firm alleges a bank failed to freeze all funds the firm transferred after it was notified of fraud.
Langston & Langston PLLC filed a complaint on Sept. 27 in the Hinds County Circuit Court against SunTrust Bank & Does 1-10 alleging negligence and misrepresentation and concealment.
According to the complaint, on May 9, Langston & Langston PLLC gave authorization to its bank, BankPlus, to wire funds to its clients from a wrongful death lawsuit settlement. The suit states funds were wired to accounts at Wells Fargo Bank and SunTrust Bank.
The suit states that unbeknownst to the plaintiff, the account numbers for the Wells Fargo Bank and SunTrust Bank accounts were fraudulent and on May 9, BankPlus immediately issued notices to Wells Fargo Bank and SunTrust Bank to recall the wire transfers and those banks were also notified by telephone from the plaintiff of the fraud. The suit states Wells Fargo immediately reversed the transfer and returned the money, but SunTrust did not immediately do so.
The plaintiff alleges on May 10, SunTrust told the U.S. Secret Service that the monies in the accounts had been frozen and no funds had been lost. The suit states on June 21, SunTrust provided notice for the first time that $55,519.73 was missing, and the notice allegedly came too late for any action to be taken to recover the funds.
The plaintiff holds SunTrust Bank responsible because the defendant's allegedly late notice of the missing funds caused it to incur losses of $55,519.73 and the defendant allegedly withheld information that could have result in recovery of the stolen money.
The plaintiff seeks judgment for all damages, plus pre- and post-judgment interest, costs, attorney fees, and any other relief as the court may deem just and appropriate. It is represented by Shane F. Langston, Rebecca M. Langston and Jason L. Nabors of Langston and Langston PLLC in Jackson, Mississippi.
Hinds County Circuit Court case number 3:18-cv-00741-CWR-FKB