Five Milton Women Fall Victim to Identity Fraud

Four different Milton women reported being the victim of identity fraud after learning that credit and debit cards were used to make purchases, including one woman who discovered $20,000 in fraudulent charges. Another local woman found her identity was used to file a tax return.

A Hopewell Plantation Drive woman who was making a payment on her husband's Discover card bill discovered $20,000 in fraudulent charges, according to a Milton police incident report filed March 14.

The transactions occurred between Dec. 23, 2010 and Feb. 16.

The woman reported the fraud to Discover and closed the account.

On the same day, a Deerfield Parkway resident told police she believes she has located the person who stole her identity to use her credit card to buy a GPS unit online.

The woman told Milton police on March 14 that her Google search turned up a Braselton woman's name on the shipping address used for the $257 purchase.

The Milton woman said she was the victim of identity fraud in March 2010 also.

A day later, Milton police took an information report about another Deerfield Parkway woman who was the victim of credit card fraud.

The woman said three of her credit cards were used in separate fraudulent purchases. Her credit card issuers promised to reimburse her for the fraudulent purchases. She had the satisfaction of having Clear Wireless to suspend and flag an Internet account opened fraudulently with her card.

And on March 16, yet another Deerfield Parkway resident feel victim to identity fraud when her debit card number was used in Kennesaw and Dallas to make four purchases totaling $297.

The woman reported to Milton police that withdrawals were made on March 10 and 11 at a Walmart in Kennesaw and two gas stations in Dallas. She still had her debit card, and was unsure how the card number was obtained.

A bank customer service representative helped her cancel and flag the account.

Another local resident had her tax return rejected by the IRS because someone else had filed using her Social Security number.

The Milton woman told police that when she tried to file her tax return on Feb. 2, it was rejected. She reported the problem to the IRS, and representatives told her to file an identity fraud report with the local police. The IRS may begin an investigation.

She told Milton police that the IRS informed her the W2 filed with the false return was from a Florida business.