Ohio Identity Fraud On the Rise
Over the past year, incidents of identity fraud have “exploded” in Ohio. According to this report from the Columbus Dispatch, State Troopers have investigated 373 case so far in 2010, a 100% increase from 2009. This is said to be the largest jump in any type of crime the State Patrol handles.
Identity fraud crimes are those which involve using the identity or information of another person to gain property or service that you have no legal right to. This could include taking out a line of credit in someone else’s name or passing a stolen credit card off as your own.
Even using someone else’s name when pulled over or questioned by police can be considered identity fraud. This is particularly common in instances where the suspect has a warrant or is in the country illegally.
But why are identity theft crimes on the rise? No doubt it’s at least partially due to increased awareness. As more and more police are trained to spot identity crimes, their detection and reportable numbers subsequently rise. After all, despite the rise in Ohio, there hasn’t been a similar uptick in the offenses nationwide.
According to the Columbus Dispatch article, though, a spokesperson from the FTC states that lack of good information may be contributing to an inaccurate representation on the national level. She also suggests the recession may be spurring more people to commit such offenses in an attempt to get ahead in a failing economy.
While she makes a common argument, suggesting the economy is to blame, other reports have stated the recession hasn’t had an impact on crime at all.
There’s no doubt these offenses are costly—the price tag for all identity theft crimes in the United States from 2006 through 2008 was an estimated $17 billion—a huge cost to the victims and the public who foots the bill for enforcement.
Years ago, you may have donned a disguise to go to the bank and represent yourself as an account holder in order to gain access to someone else’s money. Now, my guess is the majority of these crimes are done without ever setting foot in a bank, a store, or without having any other face-to-face contact. Instead, it’s all done online, through ATMs and other similar signs of modern times.
You can bet, if caught in violation of an identity fraud offense, you will be prosecuted. Even for the lowest classification of identity theft, you are facing felony charges and a potential 12 months in prison. That penalty gets significantly more severe as the value of your theft increases.
If you are charged with identity fraud or any other related fraud offense, contact us for a free consultation on your case today.
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