A traffic stop by Tulsa County sheriff’s deputies on Friday helped investigators uncover a huge identity theft operation.
The investigation began when someone fired shots during a burglary at a storage facility on the night of April 4.
No one was hurt, and the manager gave deputies a good description of the thieves’ vehicle, which was pulled over the next day on Charles Page Boulevard, with four people inside.
A deputy found drugs and what appeared to be stolen or counterfeit checks. Investigators say Tammy Petit, 42, came clean.
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Deputies say Petit told them about her large identity theft operation in an attempt to cut a deal.
“All these people understand. They operate in the same world. They know the guy or girl sitting next to them is going to tell on them. What she did was she dropped the dime on herself first,” said Major Tom Huckeby.
They say they searched a home and a motel room based on her information, and found computers, scanners and printers and more than 600 pieces of evidence in the motel room.
Investigators are still trying to determine just how widespread the ID theft ring is, but they already know there are potential victims, not just in Oklahoma, but across the country.
“This is a pretty high-tech business operation that we’ve uncovered,” said Deputy Greg Brown.
Investigators say Petit told them she would steal names and addresses wherever she could find them, then use that information to make official-looking requests for documents, including birth certificates and Social Security cards.
“She has created requests for birth certificates, requests for driver’s license information, requests for Social Security and date of birth,” Huckeby said. “Everything she’d need to get a Social Security number to get state assistance.”
Petit told investigators that in 2009, she made more than $1,000,000 in profit.
Deputies say they believe there are victims all across Oklahoma as well as in other states including Texas, Arkansas, Alabama, New York and Tennessee.
“These people are losing their identity and they’ve never been to Oklahoma,” Huckeby said.
Other suspects identified in the identity theft ring are Jeanna Darlene Edwards, David Eugene Holland and Michael Robert Prather.
Prather, 22, was arrested on complaints of possession of a controlled drug after a felony conviction and obstructing an officer. Edwards, 33, was arrested on a second degree burglary complaint, and Holland, 42, was jailed on outstanding warrants in Creek and McIntosh counties.
Meth was found in the car. Investigators believe money from the elaborate operation was used for drugs.
The Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office has contacted the FBI about the case and says the FBI has indicated it will help in the investigation.
Deputies say Petit is cooperating. She was booked into the Tulsa County jail on a complaint of false impersonation.
Meanwhile, investigators are working to sort through the enormous amount of evidence they’ve collected. They’re urging anyone who has been burglarized recently or thinks they’ve been ripped off, to call investigators at 918-596-5690.
