A Donna musician says scammers tried to steal thousands of dollars from him after someone reached out about booking his band for an event.

Jason Moreno, owner and member of the Buck’N Crazy Band, says a person claiming to be from Brownsville contacted him in April about hiring his band. He says the booking process quickly felt suspicious.

"It progressed pretty quickly, which was a red flag for me because he was really aggressive,” Moreno said. “We asked for a $500 deposit, and he offered $1,000, which was another red flag."

The client then sent what looked like a check for more than $4,000 and asked Moreno for a favor. 

“He said he was having problems paying his caterer for the event and asked if he could add more to the check,” Moreno said.

According to Moreno, the man told him to cash the check, keep what he was owed, and send the rest back through Zelle, with a $200 gratuity for his efforts.

Moreno says the red flags increased once he received the check because it appeared to be from an out-of-state bank. He contacted the bank, and the fraud department told him they could not validate the check.

Moreno then canceled the event without sending any money.

After canceling, he went online to warn other musicians and posted evidence and text messages. He says the post went viral, and he later learned the same person had already attempted to scam people in the area and San Antonio.

“It's scary because there are a lot of bands out there,” Moreno said.

Experts say one of the easiest ways to spot a scam is to check online before sending money. The Better Business Bureau pointed Channel 5 News to their scam tracker website, where people can search suspicious phone numbers, emails or business names to see if others have reported similar scams.

"AI is so easy to use to create a fake check," South Texas Better Business Bureau President Hilda Martinez said, urging people to report scams even if they weren't victims so others can track what scams are being used.

Martinez also said performers should reach out to the venue to find out if any events are scheduled. 

“Another red flag we see is that people don't reach out to them by phone to see if they can talk to somebody actually in person,” Martinez said.

Channel 5 News reached out to the number Moreno was given but only got a voice-recorded message.

Moreno says he has not heard back from the alleged client and hopes the tactics don't cost other musicians their hard-earned money.

“Don't be so hungry for gigs, for work,” Moreno said. “We all need to work, but get a contract. Dig further, dig deeper, ask probing questions, and figure out if it's real or not.”

Watch the video above for the full story.