An alert officer found a clue and followed the trail – which led to two area hotel rooms, five suspects and piles of evidence.
Bothell Police seized stacks of credit cards in the ID-theft case, and is now recommending charges against the suspects.
Our officers contacted the victim, who said his neighborhood (just east of Canyon Creek Elementary) was targeted by mail thieves several months ago. At the time, he wasn't sure if his mail was among the pieces stolen. Days ago, he started learning about credit card accounts in his name, that he never created.
His headache is likely not over just yet, but at least these cards are out of circulation – and will be destroyed.
Mail theft is on the rise, across the country and in Bothell. If your mail, or the mail in your neighborhood is stolen; consider placing a freeze on your credit, to help prevent identity thieves from opening accounts in your name.
The Federal Trade Commission has created this web page to help you learn more about initiating a credit freeze, along with useful information about how to stop pre-screened credit card offers from arriving in your mailbox. Those offers are among the top things mail thieves are looking for. We offer more information and ways to prevent mail theft here.
We can't prevent every mail theft or catch every identity thief, but we can all take steps to make it harder for thieves to find what they're looking for. And sometimes, that's all it takes.