Two dozen people suspected of being part of an identity theft ring have been arrested in South Florida, according to Fort Lauderdale police. The gang is accused of stealing at least $100,000 across the region.
Police spokesman Frank Sousa said 46 people, including bank managers, bank cashiers and at least one federal postal worker, are suspected of being in the ring.
The suspects used stolen personal information, payroll and rebate checks that they acquired during home and car burglaries to create fake checks they later cashed at Wal-Mart, Publix supermarkets, check cashing stores and banks.
Mario Chandler and Christopher Wright were among those arrested and are thought to be the ringleaders. Police didn’t release any other information about these or the other arrested suspects.
Businesses seem to have been hardest hit, but several residents also lost money.
Fort Lauderdale police and the U.S. Secret Service have been working together on the investigation since February.
On Thursday, law enforcement agencies across South Florida teamed up to arrest several suspects.
Arrest warrants have been issued for the remaining gang members.
This is just the latest of many similar identity theft cases involving bankers, postal workers, accountants, call center employees and others in positions of trust who have ready access to your most personal information.
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One Comment
Makes me want to keep my money in the mattress and sic my dog on the postman! It’s a sad state of affairs.