Wednesday, March 12, 2004

Criminals stealing bills now By JOHN MUNFORD jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com Fayette residents are being advised not to mail their bills from their home mail boxes as the result of an ongoing identity fraud investigation by the Fayette County Sheriff’s Department. Crooks are stealing mortgage payments from mailboxes all over the county in an identity fraud scheme, according to deputies. The criminals use the account number to print bogus checks with valid account numbers, deputies said. The new checks are written out to a name that matches the false identification used by the suspects, police said. In some cases, the check has been “washed” and deposited in a new account, making it easier for the suspect to change the payee’s name. Instead of leaving the bills in the mailbox for pickup, the sheriff’s department encourages citizens to drop off their mail at the post office or utilize online banking. So far, cases of this nature have been reported at homes in Fayetteville, Peachtree City and unincorporated Fayette County, police said. What do you think of this story? Click here to send a message to the editor. Back to the News Home Page| Back to the top of the page