Three people from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania were arrested and charged with hundreds of counts related to identity theft and fraud, and now investigators are looking for more victims in the case, the Northampton County district attorney’s office said.
District Attorney Stephen Baratta said earlier this month, Francisco Rodriguez-Ayala, Melissa Ramos and Giovanni Guridy were arrested after officers carried out a search warrant at a home they shared. Baratta said at the home, investigators found stolen driver’s licenses, licenses to carry firearms, medical marijuana cards, passports, military ID cards, credit cards, social security cards and numerous stolen and fake checks.
A notebook filled with names, birth dates and social security numbers was also found in the home, along with other evidence Baratta said was used to create “fraudulent accounts to make purchases across the Commonwealth.”
Rodriguez-Ayala, Ramos and Guridy were each charged with more than 650 counts related to identity theft and fraud, including 128 counts each of forgery and 103 counts of identity theft.
Along with $275,000 worth of forged checks, the DA’s office said more than 130 victims have already been identified in the case, and there could be more.
Anyone who recognizes the names of the three people charged or thinks they might be a victim is asked to contact Bethlehem City Police Detective Daniel Kennedy at 610-997-7682.
Bail for both Ramos and Guridy was set at $500,000; Rodriguez-Ayala was remanded to the Northampton County Prison without bail.
People who believe they’re the victim of fraud can also report their case to the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Rapid Response Fraud Team.