A Caymanian woman was arrested and charged last month in what North Carolina authorities said was a major case of identify fraud.
Bryna L. McLaughlin, 24, faces dozens of charges in Halifax County court mostly relating to identity theft, but also for financial card forgery, possession of stolen property and possession of drug paraphernalia, according to court documents. Twenty-four year-old Jovanny Pena of Tampa, Florida, also faces numerous charges in the case.
The pair was arrested during a traffic stop on 12 March along Interstate 95 in the town of Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina. A police officer stopped the vehicle the suspects were driving because its windows were tinted darker than the law allows.
Police said the two were headed to New York when the officer stopped them.
During the ensuing vehicle search, police found dozens of credit cards, gift cards and ATM cards. There were also passports, mail, and more than $10,000 worth of jewellery. Police said all of the items appeared to have been stolen.
A device, which was used to read the credit, debit or ATM cards and allowed the card numbers to be transferred to other cards, was found during the police search. The arresting officer also found keys to other cars inside the suspects’ vehicle.
Most of the stolen goods were believed to be from Florida, where police estimated dozens of victims had been ripped off for hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and merchandise.
Ms McLaughlin’s home address was listed in Tampa, although police said she originally came to the US from the Cayman Islands.
The US Secret Service, which investigates credit card and identity fraud, is looking into the case although at press time there were no details of any federal charges being filed. The US office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement was also called in to look into Ms McLaughlin’s case.
Halifax County District Attorney Bill Graham said Ms McLaughlin and Mr. Pena were due back in court later this month. He said the two were being held in jail on $1 million bonds.
Both police and state prosecutors said it was possible the case could end up being prosecuted through the US federal court system.
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