WALTON COUNTY, Fla. — A man accused of depositing a fraudulent check worth more than $500,000 from a Walton County utility company has been taken into custody following an investigation by the Walton County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO).
According to the WCSO, investigators began looking into the case after a utility company in Santa Rosa Beach reported that a $505,400 check, made payable to a vendor, had been stolen and altered. The check was mailed on August 4, 2025, but the intended recipient never received it.
Instead, a counterfeit version of the check was reportedly deposited the following day into a JPMorgan Chase account belonging solely to Brandon Loud, 32, a Fort Lauderdale resident. The WCSO said that surveillance footage from a Chase Bank branch in Minneapolis, Minnesota, identified Mr Loud as the person who deposited the check.
Further investigation reportedly uncovered two additional stolen checks totaling $200,000 that were deposited into accounts belonging to victims of identity theft.
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Mr Loud was arrested and booked into the Walton County Jail with a bond set at $100,000. He faces a charge of grand theft of more than $100,000.
“This case highlights how quickly a stolen check can turn into a six-figure fraud,” said Walton County Sheriff Michael Adkinson.
“We encourage everyone to take proactive steps to protect their personal and financial information.”
The WCSO urged business owners and residents to remain vigilant by monitoring bank accounts weekly for unauthorized transactions, enabling two-step authentication for online banking, responding quickly to alerts, reporting suspicious activity, and closing accounts no longer in use.
The agency also warned the public never to share bank account information with individuals met online.
