Investigators with Pierce County Sheriff's Department arrested two people last month suspected of being involved in an identity-theft ring that deputies say took information from at least 22 victims and used stolen credit cards to make fraudulent purchases.
One purchase used a credit card stolen from a person's mailbox to buy $6,215 worth of merchandise from a Home Depot, deputies said. According to court records, the alleged thieves bought so much they couldn't fit it all into a Dodge pickup. About $2,000 worth of items was left in the parking lot.
Deputies caught wind of the suspects Jan. 9 when the victim of the fraudulent purchases made a police report, and investigators were able to obtain surveillance video of a vehicle tied to it. Deputies said another fraudulent credit card charge for $2,638 made at a Lowe's was declined.
Investigators identified the three suspects using video from surveillance cameras. A 29-year-old man and a 33-year-old woman were arrested Jan. 31 while driving the Dodge in Spanaway. The truck was impounded for a search warrant, and, in a news release issued Monday, deputies said "numerous" documents belonging to other identity theft victims were found.
The man was subsequently charged with first-degree identity theft and first-degree organized retail theft in Pierce County Superior Court. He has since posted bail. Deputies said charges are pending against the woman and a third suspect.
Many of the documents in the pickup were stolen checks, which deputies said totaled $121,193. Sheriff's Department spokesperson Sgt. Darren Moss said none were cashed, and about $86,000-worth of checks were taken from one crane company. Others were personal checks taken from victims' mailboxes.
Deputies identified and contacted 22 victims. According to the release, the suspects also kept a detailed notebook containing information about the victims such as social security, bank account and credit card numbers, email addresses and tax ID numbers.
