KINGSHILL — A woman with access to financial information for the government wrote a fraudulent check to herself for nearly $1,000 and then went grocery shopping in Estate Plessen.
Noemi Martinez, 25, was arrested Monday and charged with passing forged bills or notes, obtaining money by false pretenses, forgery, grand larceny, and identity theft, the Virgin Islands Police Department said.
An investigation revealed that Noemi Martinez cashed a counterfeit check prepared using the Virgin Islands Housing Authority account’s information, in the amount of $939.32 using her real identity while shopping at The Market, formally known as Plaza Extra West, to cash the check knowing that it was not issued to her, VIPD Communications Director Glen Dratte said.
Martinez surrendered herself to authorities at the Wilbur H. Francis Command Police Station without incident on Monday. Shortly thereafter, she was served an arrest warrant, and placed under arrest.
Bail for Martinez was set at $50,000. Unable to post bail, she was remanded to the Bureau of Corrections at the John A. Bell Adult Correctional Facility pending an advice-of-rights hearing scheduled for tomorrow at the Superior Court of the Virgin Islands.
On April 19, 2018, Detectives from the Economic Crimes Unit launched an investigation involving Martinez’s alleged fraudulent activity.
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