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Saturday, February 06, 2010
Police: Identity Theft Involved 450 Victims
By Rozanna M. Martinez
Journal Staff Writer
A woman recently released from jail after being charged with numerous counts of identity theft was rearrested Thursday by Albuquerque police.
Amber Tapia, 22, is awaiting trial for identity theft involving 450 victims, according to police. Authorities brought new charges against Tapia on Thursday, including identity theft, fraud and forgery.
Tapia was previously arrested by Albuquerque police in June after she allegedly stole the identities of 447 people, according to police.
Tapia failed to appear for a plea hearing last month, and a warrant was issued for her arrest. She was booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center on Jan. 15 and immediately released.
In late January, she and her boyfriend, Silvano Sandoval, allegedly used a credit card fraudulently opened under someone else's name.
A police officer recognized Tapia's photograph from store surveillance, and she was arrested, according to police.
Investigators searched Tapia's home and found $10,000 in merchandise bought with fraudulent credit cards, a victim's personal identifying information, and other fraudulent documents and identification, police said. Police obtained a search warrant on a storage unit that belonged to Tapia and found an additional 200 identification cards and other stolen property, including computers and information on possible other offenders, police said.
Tapia was being held Friday without bail at the Metropolitan Detention Center.
Sandoval was also arrested Thursday and charged with identity theft, forgery, fraud and other counts.
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