Identity Thieves Spend $12,500 in Milton Woman's Name

A Milton woman reported to Milton police that her identity had been stolen to spend more than $12,500 on credit cards that were in her name at four different stores.

The woman told police on Dec. 4 that Nordstroms had called her to ask permission to open an account in her name. The victim told the store employee that she was at home and was not attempting to open an account, according to an incident report. The store employee told her they needed to open the account so the person making the attempt could be prosecuted, so she gave the OK.

No charges were made at Nordstroms. A similar attempt to get a store credit card at a Target store was denied. The fraud department told her someone also opened accounts with Target and Best Buy.

The suspect or suspects used her identity at Macy's, Sams, Belk and Best Buy, spending more than $12,500 and using several different credit cards between Nov. 30 and Dec. 3.

The victim went online and alerted the three credit bureau, learning of the additional transactions in the process in a follow-up phone call.

Bank Returning Funds to Woman's Account

Another Milton woman also reported to Milton Police on Dec. 4 fraud on one of her accounts.

Four withdrawals were made from her checking account of $100 each between Nov. 18 and Nov. 30, according to a police report.

She said her bank is returning the $400 to her checking account.

Check Your Bank Statements for Fraud

Yet another Milton woman was victimized by identity thieves, but she was able to cancel two fraudulent transactions before they were processed.

The local resident told Milton police on Dec. 6 that her bank sent an email stating another user had been added to her checking account. She didn't authorize that, so she was able to cancel a pending transaction and her account with that bank.

On Dec. 5, she checked her credit card statement online and found another pending online fraudulent charge, which she also was able to cancel.

Guitar Bought Using Victim's Debit Card

A Milton woman's debit card was used to buy a $1,059.99 guitar from a store in Macon on Dec. 1, but she didn't notice it in her bank account records until Dec. 7.

The financial transaction fraud victim told Milton police that she still had her debit card in her possession. Since discovering the fraud, she has cancelled the account and notified her bank.

For questions about this blotter, email Bob Pepalis.