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COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- A million dollar hoax has investigators looking into check fraud charges.

Craig Jackson is a newspaper delivery man in the Turkey Creek area along Highway 115 in Colorado Springs. He said one of his customers sent him a $1 million check in the mail.

The check was real, but the gift was a joke. Now the woman who wrote the check could be facing check fraud charges.

Jackson said just before the holidays he mailed out cards to his customers, but he said he never expected the cruel joke he got in return.

“It was a real check from somebody's bank account," Jackson said. "That was real, and they thought it would be funny to write $1 million on it."

The check is properly filled out and has the right amount of zeroes.

Jackson supports his wife and three boys with his paper route, so even though he was skeptical about the validity of the check, he thought about what he could do with all that money.

“We could get the vehicles fixed, you know, I'm borrowing vehicles to do my route," Jackson said.

He said he could also fix his failing furnace that leaves his family shivering most nights.

But when he took the check to the bank he learned it was all just a cruel hoax.

“I took it down to the bank and showed it to them and looked on their account, and they didn't have the funds, and they said it was a real check, and they called her, and they said it was a joke," Jackson said.

Wells Fargo fraud investigators in Denver said they are still looking into the matter, but the woman who wrote the check will likely have her account closed.

The El Paso County Sheriff's Office and the the DA's office both said a case has not been opened to investigate the check.

We went to the home of the woman who wrote the check and spoke to her husband.

“She's not here, she's in town right now, and I don't know what she would have sent out a check for $1 million," the husband said. "I had no idea, I know nothing about it so that surprises me big time. I'm gonna have to have a talk with her to see whats going on."

Jackson said all he really wants is an apology from the woman.

We'll keep an eye on the story and let you know what happens.
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Original story:

A Colorado Springs newspaper delivery man received a $1 million check in the mail from one of his customers Tuesday, but there was one problem - the check was fraud.

Craig Jackson, an independent contractor, works the graveyard shift delivering newspapers for The Gazette in Colorado Springs.  He gave Christmas cards to all of his customers thanking them for being a customer and wishing them a happy holiday season.

Tuesday morning he got a letter in his personal mailbox from one of his customers. He recognized the woman's address as part of his overnight paper route but doesn't know her personally. In the letter was a check for $1 million. The memo of the check said for 'everything.'

Jackson opened the check in front of his wife and kids, and he said they couldn't believe it. He said he received some cards back that included some small tips. While he had his doubts about the validity of the check, he said because it is the holiday season and he had seen several lottery winners recently, combined with the tips he had already received from other customers, he was hoping it was his dream come true.

It wasn't.

Jackson went to Wells Fargo bank later that morning. The sender of the check had an account there, and bank workers determined the check was fraud. According to Jackson, the bank called the account holder, who said it was just a joke, and she would come to the bank to pick it up.

Now bank officials are investigating her for fraud.

Jackson is extremely disappointed and frustrated, saying something like this is no joke. Like many, Jackson said he and his family are struggling in tough economic times. They had high hopes, but are now 'crushed' by the news that they are not millionaires after all.

He said he does not plan on suing the woman, but did say he hopes she had not done this to anyone else. Her husband said he had no idea she had mailed the check but confirmed when he saw a copy of the check that it did belong to him and his wife's joint account.

The check has a Christian psalm imprinted at the top, but Jackson said he has serious doubts about her morals after what she did. He wrote a letter, which he plans to give to her if they ever make contact.

Note: Jackson gave FOX21 a copy of the check. We blacked out personal information, including name, address, check number, routing number and bank number, but you can view a larger copy by clicking the image above.