The search for an identity theft suspect led investigators to a Tampa motel on Thursday night, where they arrested a woman accused of selling names and social security numbers that could be used for tax refund fraud.
Investigators with the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office had been looking for 29-year-old Amanda Hunter for two days. They found her at a motel on East Hillsborough Avenue with the help of officers from the Tampa Police Department.
Hunter is facing charges of criminal use of personal information. If convicted, she could face up to 20 years in prison. She also had a drug-related warrant at the time of her arrest.
Deputies say after learning about Hunter, they made two undercover "buys" of identities, twice receiving handwritten pages of 40 names and social security numbers for $900.
Corp. Bruce Crumpler said he determined it was time to track her down because "if she's not selling to us anymore, and even if she is selling to us, she's selling to other people."
News Channel 8 followed Crumpler's team of tax fraud investigators for two days as they looked for Hunter.
Asked by News Channel 8 about the criminal allegations as she arrived in handcuffs at the sheriff's office, Hunter said she was not selling identities. Asked if she knew what the identities are used for, Hunter responded, "I don't know anything. You figure it out."
Crumpler said Hunter admitted her involvement in her interview with deputies.
While suspects filing fake tax returns are often targets of tax fraud investigations, Crumpler said those selling identities keep the crime going.
"If we can go to the next step and find these people who are selling the names and numbers and creating the trouble, or creating the problem, to us it's a big deal," he said. "We shut down a bigger source."
Tuesday, June 18 2013 6:59 PM EDT2013-06-18 22:59:54 GMT
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is suing a pool company that was the subject of an 8 On Your Side investigation this spring. Numerous customers of Pompano Beach-based Nationwide Pools contacted 8
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Sheriff Al Nienhuis would like to verify that the Hernando County Sheriff's Office is currently working on one of hundreds of very ambiguous leads in the Jennifer Odom Homicide.
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Three Bartow High School students are accused of breaking into the city middle and high school. Police said they began investigating a series of school burglaries on Monday. Investigators said the
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Tuesday, June 18 2013 6:59 PM EDT2013-06-18 22:59:54 GMT
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is suing a pool company that was the subject of an 8 On Your Side investigation this spring. Numerous customers of Pompano Beach-based Nationwide Pools contacted 8
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi is suing a pool company that was the subject of an 8 On Your Side investigation this spring.
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Chrysler says it has resolved its differences with the government and will recall older Jeep Grand Cherokee and Liberty SUVs that could be at risk of a fuel tank fire. Earlier this month the company refused
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Fewer U.S. adults are smoking, a new government report says. Last year, about 18 percent of adults participating in a national health survey described themselves as current smokers.
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A military widow wants to know why another woman's name is engraved on her husband's headstone. The woman discovered the mistake while visiting her husband's grave at Fort Logan Cemetery in Denver, Colorado.
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A 72-year-old Myrtle Beach man was charged after police said he ran over a duck and her ducklings on purpose with his BMW. According to a police report, Robert Allen Willard
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An image displaying what appears to be a pair of hairy legs has gone viral on the web. According to Buzzfeed.com, the image was first spotted on Sina Weibo, a popular social media website in China. The
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Monday, June 17 2013 6:40 PM EDT2013-06-17 22:40:17 GMT
The Vigo Importing Company has been bringing exotic products to Tampa for years. The warehouse facility of off Hillsborough Avenue is filled with all kinds of delicious things to eat.
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Troy Petro and his fishing buddy fell overboard "like rockets." Those were Petro's words as he stood barefoot at the St. Petersburg Marina Tuesday, feeling lucky he wasn't hurt.
Troy Petro and his fishing buddy fell overboard "like rockets." Those were Petro's words as he stood barefoot at the St. Petersburg Marina Tuesday, feeling lucky he wasn't hurt.
