Pair Surrender in Bad-Check Scam

Two teen-agers wanted on grand theft charges for allegedly stealing thousands of dollars from San Fernando Valley high school students surrendered Monday to authorities, Los Angeles police said.

Trenell Floyd and Jabari McDavid, both 19, turned themselves in to detectives at Valley police headquarters in Van Nuys, LAPD Detective P.J. Green said.

The youths were wanted for persuading seven students to hand over their checking and savings account numbers and other banking information, which was used to deposit hundreds of forged and stolen checks, worth $61,000, in the students’ accounts.

The students would withdraw funds generated by the bad checks once they had been credited to their accounts, but before they could be rejected by the bank, police said.

Then, the students would give the money to McDavid and Floyd, who would pay them up to $100 for their services.

Some of the students, who attended Taft, Chatsworth, Canoga Park and Granada Hills high schools, reported the scam to police after their banks began freezing their accounts, police said. Two of the youths were prosecuted in juvenile court. All of the teen-agers and their families must now make restitution to the banks.

Warrants were issued last week for the arrests of McDavid and Floyd, each of whom faces multiple counts of grand theft, police said. Police are still seeking two other men who are suspected of originating the plot to steal money from banks by exploiting the students.