10 Indicted In Mail Theft, Check Forgery Ring
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Ten people have been indicted on charges that they stole from mail boxes and used personal information to forge checks.
The defendants range in age from 18 to 40.
Spokesperson Jeanne Cooney of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Minneapolis says the thieves used a technique known as "check washing".
"They used a chemical to erase certain details from checks while retaining other information, such as the bank account numbers and the routing numbers," she said.
NewsRadio 830 WCCO's Steve Murphy Reports
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The stolen information was used to make purchases across the Twin Cities and Wisconsin.
If convicted in the conspiracy, the defendants could face up to 30 years in prison.