Westport Mother, Son Charged With Identity Theft: Police

WESTPORT, CT — A Westport mother and her son are accused of using a dead man's bank card to withdraw money from the man's account between February and May, according to police.

In a news release, Police Lt. Dave Wolf said the department began investigating suspicious withdrawals from the man's bank account on May 25.

According to Wolf, the man died in February and the appointed fiduciary told officers she was reviewing the deceased’s bank statements and noticed several cash withdrawals made between the day after the man died and May.

Police determined the withdrawals were made at the ATMs of area banks, and an investigating detective was able to obtain surveillance footage of the alleged illegal cash withdrawals, Wolf said.

The footage showed a younger man and an older woman, as well as the car they were driving. Based on that information, Adam Clawson, 42, and his mother, Arlene Clawson, 66, were identified as suspects, Wolf said.

According to Wolf, Adam Clawson ran errands for the deceased, which is how he is believed to have obtained the debit/credit card.

The mother and son were both arrested Dec. 3 on a warrant. They were both charged with first-degree identity theft, third-degree larceny, payment card theft, illegal use of a payment card, receiving goods/services obtained by illegal use of a payment card, fraudulent use of an ATM and six counts of conspiracy.