Credit card charges lead to discovery of burglary

GREEN VALLEY--Local residents vacationing in Utah this week discovered that a credit card they had left behind had been used illegally, which led police to discover that the couple's home had been burglarized.

The burglary, at the 300 block of West Camino Del Sonador, had all the hallmarks of an identity theft operation.

At approximately 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, the resident called the Pima County Sheriff's Department Green Valley Substation after discovering that someone had used his wife's credit card, which had been left at the couple's home in Green Valley while they were in Utah.

The man was concerned that someone had broken into his home, according to a sheriff's report on the incident.

Deputies went to the home and found the rear patio door standing open. Paperwork was strewn about the residence, files and drawers left open, and window screens ripped off, authorities said.

Televisions, VCRs, silver pitchers, and other valuables were left untouched.

"It appeared that whoever was in the residence was looking specifically for certain things such as possibly money, credit cards, or some form of identity stuff ," said Deputy Randy Bicknese in his report on the incident.

The resident said he had been away from Green Valley since May 21. It is not known exactly when the burglary took place.

Suspects were able to withdraw $200 twice with the stolen credit card before it was canceled, the report says.

The Green Valley area has been the target of burglaries involving suspected identity theft rings for several years, though the problem had virtually stopped for some time after a massive public awareness campaign by local law enforcement in 2004.

According to Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard, Arizona leads the nation in identity theft, a crime often connected to methamphetamine use.

thull@gvnews.com|547-9732