Stolen Identity Used For $70,000 Fraud

Deputies arrested and charged an engaged couple with identity theft. They say 23 Year-Old Jason Martino and 26 Year-Old Lashonta Simmons stole Edward Oswald's identity and went on a spending spree for three months till Oswald found out...and another four months before deputies tracked the couple down with enough evidence for a warrant.

Oswald says Jason Martino worked as a temp at Prudential Insurance Agency in Mount Pleasant. Oswald says he did not know Martino. While on the job, deputies say Martino took Oswald's personal information from an application, then opened at least eight credit card accounts.

Deputies say the paper trail led to eight credit accounts created by Jason Martino and his fiance, Lashonta Simmons...in Oswald's name. Oswald said, "He had my date of birth right and my social security number right. With those two things, he was able to open the cards. He didn't have my mother's maiden name right." That error didn't stop the approval process or the estimated $70,000 in spending.

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Collection Agencies Scamming With Old Debts

Move over Nigerian bank account scammers. There's a new crook in town, one who plays on fear to sucker the unwary into paying thousands of dollars to get out from under old debts they may no longer owe.

The latest wrinkle in this tawdry business involves collection agencies that buy the right to old debts, many of which are no longer owed because they were paid or the statute of limitations has run out.

Often armed with no more than a name and an amount owed - bought from an old creditor for two or three cents on the dollar - they access credit records and find personal information, including the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of relatives of the original debtor. Then they call the person, along with an unsuspecting relative, to claim legal action is pending (which is often not the case) that can be stopped by paying off the debt (to which they've added bogus fees and charges).

Often these bottom-feeders confuse names and go after the wrong person, but they don't care who pays as long as they scare someone into opening their wallet. They offer little documentation because they don't have it or what little exists shows that the debt's been paid or is no longer collectable.

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