Detroit Woman Accused Of Stealing Nearly $20K From Menards

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – A 30-year-old Michigan woman has been arrested for allegedly using fraudulent cards to purchase nearly $20,000 worth of stolen merchandise from Menards stores in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

According to a criminal complaint, Jasmine Annice Williams, of Detroit, hit at least six Menards stores in Minnesota and at least one in Wisconsin over the past week. Police say Williams is accused of using multiple accounts at multiple stores, resulting in thousands of dollars in fraudulent transactions.

Court records say an investigation revealed that the woman would allegedly apply for Menards credit cards using stolen identities and would then place a hold on the victims' mail for a short period of time so they wouldn't receive notices about the credit cards.

MORE: Read the full criminal complaint

Police say purchases could be made using the stolen information without having the physical card by entering the account holder's date of birth and social security number to complete the transactions.

The amount of known transactions made at Menards in Minnesota totaled $18,199. 53, court records show.

The incidents started in Wisconsin and Menards stores in West St. Paul, Apple Valley, Golden Valley, Brunsville, Richfield and Eden Prairie were also hit.

Upon arrest on Oct. 2, a criminal complaint shows Williams told police she was using account information provided by her mother, which she said she had permission to use.

During a search of the hotel room where Williams was staying in Eagan, police say they found a journal detailing alleged criminal activity in a backpack that also contained miscellaneous gift cards, a debit card with no name on it and various Minnesota Menards receipts.