My father read the word once and his expression hardened in a way I had seen only a few times before during serious discussions about fraud investigations. Without saying another word he picked up his phone and called a former colleague who now worked in the regional risk department for the bank.
Within fifteen minutes the call was on speaker and a man introduced himself as Anthony Delgado, head of risk management for the region. As my father explained the situation Anthony listened carefully before responding with a quiet seriousness.
“We have been monitoring Diane Whitaker for several weeks,” Anthony said. “Several foreign transfers connected to companies she controls triggered internal alerts, and this morning’s deposit activated every fraud flag in our system.”
My mother’s voice rose in disbelief. “If you suspected her, why let her walk into the branch with my daughter sitting beside her?”
Anthony replied patiently that investigators were already coordinating with federal authorities because stopping the transaction too early might allow the funds to disappear offshore before evidence could be secured.