By Shelby Stewart-Soldan
Staff Writer
Brandon Twp. — A Florida woman has been arrested in connection with fraud and theft from a Brandon Township resident.
Jessica Fountaine currently has pending charges of third degree grand theft, uttering a forged bill, check or draft, and scheme to defraud a financial institution for a total bond of $85,000. She also currently has a pending charge for identity fraud out of Cuyahoga County, Ohio.
“She actually got the personal information of one of the citizens here and went to several banks in Florida,” said Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Detective Keith Nabozny. “I got the surveillance from the banks, and seeing that they were done at the Florida branches, I sent the information to the agencies where the banks were at. There were three agencies involved. One was able to identify the suspect and put forth charges.”
On April 4, 2023, the victim reported to OCSO that her identity had been compromised, and it was originally used to close her AT&T account and open a new one in her name without her permission or knowledge.
“There were three withdraws made for a total of $12,000 at three different financial institutions in Florida,” said Nabozny.
He also said that for anyone worrying about fraud or identity theft to be vigilant and know that if something sounds like it’s too good of a deal, it probably is.
“If you’re getting emails or phone calls for things you didn’t apply for or know of, don’t fall for it,” he said. “And shred personal documents, don’t leave them laying around in the cars. Also if you have a bank and you’re able to get notifications for charges, use it.”