Couple Arrested on Fraud Charges
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hIgh SChool BaSEBall Lakeside to start playoffs tomorrow PAGE 6 MINDEN RESS ERALD P -H www.press-herald.com April 30, 2015 | 50 Cents THURSDAY INSIDE today INfERNo oN hwy. 79 MINDEN CRIME Fire destroys Couple arrested travel trailer on fraud Woman accused of shoplifting, drug No injuries reported during Wednesday blaze possession charges NEWS PG.3 Police say couple swindled banks, insurance companies MICHELLE BATES [email protected] A Minden couple sits behind bars after Minden Police discov- ered an alleged trail of bank fraud and identity theft. Raymond Warren, 57, of the Best Kare 1100 block of Rathbun Street, was arrested Tuesday, April 28, T-shirt and charged with 20 counts of identity theft, 38 counts of access contest device fraud, 38 counts of unlawful LIFE PG.5 possession of fraudulent docu- ments for identifi- cation purposes, issuing worthless checks, bank fraud, forgery, 17 counts of mone- R. WARREN tary instrument abuse, three counts of comput- er fraud, and three counts of online impersonation. Bond was set at $60,000. ‘Good Webster Fire District His wife, Bar- 10, along with the Min- bara Warren, 45, B. WARREN luck’ den Fire Department, has been charged were dispatched just with three counts of bank fraud, after 1 p.m. Wednes- issuing worthless checks and day after a fire broke three counts of monetary instru- OPINION PG.4 out and destroyed a ment abuse. Bond was set at travel trailer in the $45,000. 17,000 block of High- “It (the case) came in as some WEATHER way 79. The occupant bad checks and as they (detec- of the trailer says he tives) got to looking into it, they TOMORROW’S OUTLOOK was outside and saw got to two local banks totaling smoke coming from about $21,000 in bad checks,” the trailer. The cause of Minden Police Chief Steve Crop- the blaze remains per said. “A representative from under investigation. National Crime Insurance Bruce Franklin/Press-Herald Bureau, which investigates insur- ance fraud, got involved and he assisted in the investigation.” Cropper says a search warrant 80 56 SeeARREST, Page 2 HIGH LOW Plentiful sunshine. CoMMuNIty outREaCh Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. CONNECT WITH US Fundraiser Saturday to benefit St. Jude patient @mindenph MICHELLE BATES was found on his frontal His family says he’s had family says. He will return headaches. After surgery, [email protected] lobe. brain surgery, chemother- to St. Jude in July for more he had to relearn many of The fundraiser is set for apy and radiation treat- tests and to the things people take for noon at 677 Highway 531. ments to treat the tumor, monitor the gran ted, like learning col- A fundraiser has been Fish lunch plates will be but not all of the initial tumors. ors, numbers, telling time, set for Saturday, May 2 for a available for an $8 dona- tumor was removed. After Before he the months of the year. St. Jude patient who is tion. A live band with Dex- he went to St. Jude Chil- had the sur- Other things included hav- doing well, but can no ter Mathis will be playing dren’s Research Hospital, gery, Daniel ing to relearn how to bathe, Vol. 46 No. 215 longer have the life-saving as well. another tumor was discov- s u f f e r e d dress himself and use eat- surgeries he needs. The benefit is to raise ered on the right side of his from a ing utensils. Daniel Thompson, 20, money for Daniel and his brain. He is unable to have severe lack THOMPSON “He had to learn what to was diagnosed with stage 4 family to help defray med- any more surgeries, of appetite, call items and associate the glioblastoma, giant cell, a ical and every day expens- because it will be detri- vomiting, vision and mem- type of brain tumor that es. mental to his health, his ory problems and severe SeeFUNDRAISER, Page 2 2 Thursday, April 30, 2015 – Minden Press-Herald SECONDwww.press-herald.com FRONT FUNDRAISER Continued from page 1 proper word with what he was trying to say,” his mother Stephanie Thompson said. “He has lost some of his long- term memory that will never be recovered at this point. He continues to have short-term memory problems but he has developed ways to cope with that.” His family says he is doing well now. His weight is back up, appetite is back to normal and he doesn’t get sick to his stomach the way he used to. He has made tremendous improvement in learning. “His doctor has concerns on the MRI, but that could be a side effect of the radiation,” his mom said. His family says he loves to work, enjoys camping, fishing and hunting. He taught him- self to play the guitar and re- taught himself following sur- gery. He is the oldest of six children. “He is an awesome young man that I am very proud of,” she said. “He knows he wouldn’t have been able to Daniel Thompson has two tumors, one on each side of his brain. While physicians at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital monitor his health, Daniel come as far as he has without pushes himself to stay active, his mother Stephanie Thompson says. The fundraiser set for Saturday at noon is to help the family defray medical God.” expenses and help with every day expenses. Courtesy Photos City picked it up later. nonexistent business. Once Det. Keith King time. City. ARREST Investigators say it all “He was ‘kiting’ the began delving into the The insurance fraud Somehow, he said, the Continued from page 1 started when they were checks from Regions Bank alleged crimes against began in 2012, according banks networked and fig- contacted about two bad to t he Navy Federal Credit Regions, Agent Ted Raley, to what investigators ured out what was going checks written by Barbara Union,” Cropper said. with the NCIB contacted found. on. was issued and police went Warren to Brookshire’s Kiting is a term used them in reference to the While King was investi- to the Rathbun Street resi- Grocery in October 2014. when checks are floated insurance fraud against gating the Regions case, “He went from banks to dence and seized docu- One of the checks was from bank to bank. In USAA, an insurance com- Det. Chris Cheatham writing hot checks at Dixie mentation in reference to more than $500, which is a other words, Warren was pany for military mem- received a case from Citi- Mart,” Cropper said. the case. Police seized felony, Cropper says. essentially floating a bers. zens Bank along the same Investigators say Ray- numerous boxes of checks, Within a handful of check. But instead of writ- Investigators say it’s lines. In the Citizens case, mond Warren admitted to checkbooks, paperwork, days, a representative at ing a check and making a roughly $25,000 worth of Warren allegedly created a the charges, including the and some electronics. Regions Bank contacted deposit before the check claims where Warren has new name and opened an insurance fraud. Barbara Investigators also seized a police telling them Ray- cleared, he would with- created bogus accounts, account with false identifi- truck purchased under an mond Warren had taken draw money from an ATM saying someone broke into cation and paperwork. Warren’s charges, investi- assumed name the Friday Navy Federal Credit Union machine before the check his vehicle or his home. Warren was reportedly gators said, stem from before the couple’s arrest. checks and was writing came through and put it The claims were between doing the same thing with writing bad checks and The dealership in Bossier them on an account for a into another bank. $1,500 and $2,000 each two other banks in Bossier cashing fraudulent checks. Thursday, April 30, 2015 – Minden Press-Herald 3 facebook.com/mindenph louISIaNa lEgISlatuRE WEBSTER&MORE Proposal to limit TOPS program wins senate support MELINDA DESLATTE 2015-16 level. Rather than its growth. He said the tion programs. Worries about the cost amendment from Sen. the current automatic program is forecast to cost Jindal described the of TOPS have grown as the Associated Press Rick Gallot, D-Ruston, that increases whenever tuition Louisiana $354 million in proposal last week as state has faced continuing would ha ve kept students costs rise on college cam- 2019. "breaking the promise we budget shortfalls and as BATON ROUGE — whose parents earn more puses, increases to TOPS "I think it's wonderful made to Louisiana fami- colleges have raised their than $1 million a year Ignoring opposition from payments in the 2016-17 that we have the program, lies" to cover the full cost tuition rates to compen- Gov. Bobby Jindal, state school year and beyond and I think we need to be of tuition if a student sate for cuts to their state from being eligible for a senators agreed Wednes- would have to get separate smart enough to do some- reaches the academic financing. Each increase TOPS award. day to put cost controls on approval from lawmakers. thing to make sure that requirements for TOPS. in tuition drives up the "In my mind, if you Louisiana's TOPS free col- The measure, heading the program continues for Currently, to get the cost of TOPS. make over a million dol- lege tuition program. to the House for debate, our children and our basic TOPS scholarship But the program is lars a year, you probably The Senate voted 27-9 could make students and grandchildren," Donahue that covers all tuition costs much beloved among can afford to pay for a for the bill by Sen.