Man facing ID theft charges

Published 1:11 pm Saturday, March 19, 2011

A 34-year-old man living in Albert Lea is facing a charge of identity theft after he allegedly stole the identity of a man in northern Virginia.

About 10 years ago, Juan Manuel Delacruz-Cruz reportedly paid for the birth certificate and Social Security number of Juan Torres, 30, of Sterling, Va.

Juan Delacruz-Cruz

Since, Delacruz-Cruz has reportedly used that information to obtain a driver’s license, Social Security card, bank card, utilities, phones and even unemployment benefits.

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According to court documents, Torres has had a loss of $16,000 connected to the alleged fraudulent use of his identity and the expenses incurred in straightening out problems associated with it.

“It’s affected me,” Torres said. “For my family, my job — not being able to buy myself a house and provide for my family like I need to.”

Torres, who served as a military police officer in the U.S. Army, said he applied for a job in Washington, D.C., as a police officer at the U.S. Capitol; however, he was denied this opportunity because of a misdemeanor assault charge and credit problems Delacruz-Cruz had allegedly incurred under his name.

Torres said he was even denied from being a soccer coach for his 8-year-old child because of the assault charge.

“My husband served in the military and did everything for the United States,” said Torres’ wife, Martha. “He worked hard to do the things he did being in the military and taking care of his family.”

Because of what they’ve been through during the past 10 years, the couple wants to share their experiences in the hopes of helping at least one person from having to go through the same thing.

“How are we going to protect our children?” Martha asked.

The couple said they first noticed the questionable activity in 2001 when it came time to file their taxes. They found there was a discrepancy.

Since, they’ve had other instances when it seemed someone else was using his name. Once, they applied for a T-Mobile phone and were told they already had one.

They contacted the Albert Lea Police Department about the behavior in October 2003. At that time there was insufficient information about the person using the identity to investigate effectively, reports stated.

According to court documents, the couple reported that Torres’ identity had been stolen when they were living in Georgia. They notified credit bureaus, the IRS and the Social Security Administration of the theft.

In December 2008, they contacted the Police Department again, reporting that the person using his identity now had a Minnesota driver’s license. The man was reportedly working at Larson Contracting at least until July 2008, and they had been receiving bills incurred by the man.

In June 2010, the couple reported to police that the alleged thief was reportedly getting unemployment benefits through the state of Minnesota using the victim’s Social Security number.

Using this information, police were able to trace the person to an address at 325 Water St. in Albert Lea, where they arrested Delacruz-Cruz.

The man reportedly had a driver’s license with Torres’ name and date of birth on it, and a Social Security Card, a U.S. Bank debit card and a Visa debit card.

Delacruz-Cruz pleaded not guilty in Freeborn County District Court on Monday to his charge.

He has been scheduled for a pre-trial April 22 with a jury trial slated to begin April 26.

He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $25,000 fine.

Tips to prevent identity theft

• When you pay bills, don’t leave the envelopes containing your checks at your home mailbox for the postal carrier to collect. If stolen, your checks can provide valuable information to the thief.
• When ordering new checks, remove extraneous information such as your middle name, phone number, Social Security number or driver’s license number. The fewer pieces of identifying information you have on your checks the better.
• Don’t toss credit card convenience checks or pre-approved credit offers in the trash or recycling bin before first tearing them into small pieces or shredding them. The solicitations can be used by Dumpster divers in your name.
• Store your canceled checks in a secure place.
• Review your credit card statements and phone bills for unauthorized charges or fraudulent use.
• Order a free copy of your credit report each year from each of the three largest credit bureaus.
• Don’t give out your credit card number or other personal information over the phone unless you know with whom you’re doing business.
• Use a secure browser when shopping online.
• Shop with companies you know online. Check their online privacy policy.
• Keep a record of purchase orders and confirmation numbers for your records.
• Keep your passwords private.