Too late for Zach, but this is an excellent site for info about this type of scam. The lady sells horses for a living and gets this scam frequently. Just updated today.
Http://www.bustedupcowgirl.com
I think the kid knew or rather suspected it was a scam ..all he was asking the bank to do was verify if the check was legit ...I had to do this recently as I did not trust the issuer of the check even though it was a certified check ...mine turned out to be good. The bank should be slamed and slamed hard