Man says he was racially profiled after bank teller calls police when he attempts to cash his paycheck

Hope Schreiber
·Writer
Paul McCowns was attempting to cash his first check at a new job when a bank employee called the police. (Photo: Cleveland 19)
Paul McCowns was attempting to cash his first check at a new job when a bank employee called the police. (Photo: Cleveland 19)

According to a Cleveland man, a local bank branch racially profiled him when he was attempting to cash his first check from his new job.

Paul McCowns told Cleveland 19 that he went to a Huntington Bank branch next to a grocery store in Cleveland on Dec. 1 to cash a paycheck after starting his new job at an electric company about three weeks earlier.

McCowns, who is black, was asked by the bank employee to provide two forms of ID, which he did in the form of a driver’s license and a Social Security card. Per bank policy of non-Huntington customers, McCowns also provided a fingerprint.

Even after providing his information, the bank employee was still suspicious. “They tried to call my employer numerous times. He never picked up the phone,” McCowns told the news outlet.

McCowns was informed that the bank could not cash his check, which was a little over $1,000, and he left. While he was leaving the bank, the teller called the police.

“I get in my truck and the squad car pull in front of me, and he says, ‘Get out the car,’” McCowns told the outlet. McCowns was handcuffed and placed in the back of a police cruiser. However, after just minutes of being held in custody, police were able to contact McCowns’s employer, who confirmed the legitimacy the check.

McCowns believes that the employees at the bank were racially profiling him. He took the check and cashed it the next day at another Huntington location without any issues.

According to Cleveland 19, a representative of the bank said there had been 11 cases of fraud at this particular branch in the past few months, and that tellers were being vigilant.

The bank provided a statement to the news outlet, which read: “We sincerely apologize to Mr. McCowns for this extremely unfortunate event. We accept responsibility for contacting the police, as well as our own interactions with Mr. McCowns. Anyone who walks into a Huntington branch should feel welcomed. Regrettably, that did not occur in this instance and we are very sorry. We hold ourselves accountable to the highest ethical standards in how we operate, hire and train colleagues, and interact with the communities we have the privilege of serving.”

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