[idtheft_help]

I live in Texas. My identity (name and social) was stolen and used to set a credit card account. They used an address I lived at 5 years ago, used the wrong date of birth, and used a different telephone number. They purchased items on this account and used forged convenience checks to pay the balance. The first I learned of this was when officers showed up at my work to issue a warrant to me for forgery. I've hired an attorney, filed an ID theft report with the police dept, the Postal Inspection Service, and submitted a complaint to the FTC. I contacted the credit card company and they flagged the account as fraudulant and are conducting an investigation. What can I expect from the prosecutors on this? Is this something that can remidied quickly with the charges getting dropped?

Thanks.

[lwpat]

Your attorney should be able to get the charges dropped. I assume that you have put a freeze on your credit report with the three CRA's.

[gigirle]

I'm confused as to why YOU were arrested for forgery if it was your name that was being forged and you learned about it from the arresting officer.

[idtheft_help]

I have alerts up (which I've heard can be hit or miss) and am working on the freezes.

Someon else's convenience checks were stolen, their signature was forged, and used to pay the balance on a credit card in my name.

Is it pretty common, given the amount of evidence I plan to get showing the credit card in my name was fraudulent that the case is dropped before the indictment?

The reason I'm posting here is to try and get a good feeling about the direction this is heading. This happened 3 days ago and I'm still feeling shocked. It seems to me a reasonable person would find, once the credit card account is shown to be fraudulent, that the forgery charges don't stand up. But I have been surprised at how unreasonable this whole thing has been. So do you have any info from your experiences and knowledge of similar issues that I'm standing on firm ground here?

Thanks.

[souperdave]

I have alerts up (which I've heard can be hit or miss) and am working on the freezes.

Someon else's convenience checks were stolen, their signature was forged, and used to pay the balance on a credit card in my name.

Is it pretty common, given the amount of evidence I plan to get showing the credit card in my name was fraudulent that the case is dropped before the indictment?

The reason I'm posting here is to try and get a good feeling about the direction this is heading. This happened 3 days ago and I'm still feeling shocked. It seems to me a reasonable person would find, once the credit card account is shown to be fraudulent, that the forgery charges don't stand up. But I have been surprised at how unreasonable this whole thing has been. So do you have any info from your experiences and knowledge of similar issues that I'm standing on firm ground here?

Thanks.

A credit card was opened in your name, using your SSN and an old address, then stolen "convenience checks" (when you first open a checking account?) were used to make payments on this credit card and now you're being charged with the forgery. Which forgery? The credit card? The checking account?

I've worked more than a few dozen ID theft cases and, for one, it's kinda rare that an "old address" is used by the perp when they open up a credit account(s). And, it's very rare that the perp will use stolen checks to make payments on the account. And, it's very uncommonly rare that the perp will forge the stolen checks to make payments onto any sort of account. Stolen checks are used for more "gain", not to maintain the ruse. Then, the most rare occurrence of all is for the ID theft victim to have a warrant issued for their arrest pursuant to any activity in which they've been victimized.

Not an impossible chain-of-events mind you, just highly improbable.

I imagine that there was an investigation prior to the issuance of warrant(s) and the credit card usage was researched in the establishments where it was used. There was most likely sufficient evidence, correction, there was sufficient evidence to justify warrants being issued, soooooooooo, it's probably a real good idea that you already have a lawyer.

It would not appear your representation of the facts and circumstances of your case are being sufficiently depicted in your postings. IMHO!

[idtheft_help]

Convenience checks are paper checks sent by a credit card company and act basically as a balance transer from one credit card to another or can be used as a real check would. The theft of these convenience checks, from my research, seems to be a common id theft activity.

http://www.privacyrights.org/ar/FRB-IDTheft.htm
http://idtheftsecrets.blogspot.com/2...nvenience.html

Someone had their convenience checks stolen and used to pay the balance on the fraudulent credit card account in my name. I'm surprised you find this highly improbable. One investigator at a credit card company I spoke mentioned that this is common. She did mention it happens less today, since more people check their credit history more frequently, but in the past, thieves would do this until the bad checks caught up to the card.

I've pulled my credit report and found a second credit card set up with a different credit card company using the same old address of mine. The only thing I can think of that these credit card companies have my old address on file and are sending marketing material to this old address. Whoever lives there now may be setting the mail out since its not for them (its a large apartment complex and that is common) , and the thieves are stealing the mail.

My lawyer did think the investigators jumped the gun by getting a warrant without even questioning me first, and I agree.

[idtheft_help]

Update on this.... the charge against me has been withdrawn, I am no longer a suspect in this investigation but am now considered an id theft victim in this case. The detectives have a new suspect and are planning to use my information to build a stronger case. Apparently many people have had their id's stolen and the point of comprimise has been the old address I lived at. This has certainly been an unusual incident. My lawyer still thinks they mishandled the investigation by getting a warrant without questioning me first, they could have save time and a lot of hassel for me.

[gigirle]

Very glad to hear you have been cleared here. Just sorry that you had to go thru all of this. I hope they catch the real crooks.

[souperdave]

Sounds like "mishandled" is an extreme understatement if they went about a warrant arrest on the victim instead of a proper investigation.

But, if they only did cursory checks and minimal investigation steps, then I can almost see how they ended up with the initial conclusion they did. The way you initially explained your situation led me towards ambiguity.

Good luck in clearing all this up. Being victimized by ID Theft is enough of a life-changing experience without an inept investigator or two victimizing you further.