Greeley Identity Theft Attorney
Is it Identity Theft to Use a Credit Card that You’ve Been Given?

A CDOT employee is facing Identity Theft charges after using a company credit card to charge personal expenses.

When people think of Identity Theft in Greeley, Erie, or Evans, normally what comes to mind is an unknown person somehow accessing your credit card or bank account numbers and using them to rack up debt. While that is a form of Identity Theft, more commonly, we see cases in Weld County where someone has used a business credit card or a loved one’s bank card (which they were given permission to use for certain items) and purchased things beyond what they were given permission for. That’s what happened with the director of audits for CDOT. He is accused of using a state issued credit card to make $20,000 worth of personal charges. It was not unlawful for him to have possession of the card, but his use is the issue.

Weld County Identity Theft Lawyer: What is the Definition of ID Theft?

The Colorado law definition of Identity Theft in Weld, Morgan, and Logan County – C.R.S. 18-5-902 (1)(a) – is:

(1) A person commits identity theft if he or she:

(a) Knowingly uses the personal identifying information, financial identifying information, or financial device of another without permission or lawful authority with the intent to obtain cash, credit, property, services, or any other thing of value or to make a financial payment;

Based on the information provided above, the man is facing the Identity Theft charges for using a financial device without lawful authority to purchase personal items. He was given the authority to use the car for work related purposes, but the authority did not extend to using the card for any and all purchases.

Sentence for Identity Theft in Fort Morgan, Colorado

As a class 4 felony in Sterling and Fort Morgan, Colorado, this crime is punishable by 2 to 6 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections and up to $500,000 in fines. Sometimes, this serious felony charge results from a miscommunication between a company and employee. For example, say you were given a company credit card to use for travel. You assumed this meant meals, your hotel, transportation, etc. – everything necessary to travel. But, you company was running on the policy that the card would only be used for the hotel and nothing more. You could be looking at Identity Theft and Theft charges for this misunderstanding. Always consult a written company policy for authorized expenses.

If you or someone you love has been charged with Identity Theft, be smart, exercise your right to remain silent, and contact the best Identity Theft attorneys from the O’Malley Law Office at 970-616-6009 today. Together, we can protect your future.

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