By Staff
NILES - A Niles Township woman learned she was the victim of the fast growing crime of identity theft when a bill collector inquired when she would pay on her account. The victim, a 52-year-old Niles area resident, ran her credit report and discovered someone had racked up $40,555 in charges on 10 accounts.
The victim contacted the Niles State Police Post and an investigation was initiated, which determined the suspect likely lived in the vicinity of Grand Rapids. The free spending suspect had purchased a number of very expensive items including plasma televisions, computers and furniture from Thomasville Home Furnishings of Grand Rapids valued at $14,000.
With the assistance from the Michigan State Police 6th District Headquarters, a 28-year-old female from Kent County was identified as the suspect. Since a large number of purchases had been committed using the US Mail for delivery, the investigation was coordinated with the US Postal Inspectors Office.
On March 31, a federal search warrant was executed at a residence in Grand Rapids, where a large amount of fraudulently purchased property was recovered along with the $14,000 in furniture. The furniture store was able to identify the property and the suspect.
The suspect is pending federal indictment by the US Attorney's Office in Grand Rapids on various federal charges.