Police: Woman Caught Stealing Identity to Buy Over $4,000 of Merchandise

A Chicago woman was caught trying to open up a store credit card with another woman’s identity, before trying to buy over $4,000 of store items with the falsified credit.

On Nov. 18, police were called about a woman held by Nordstrom Rack security for a deceptive practice around 7:45 p.m. The woman had opened up a credit card account using an Indiana driver’s license, and had begun filling up her cart with store items while the new account was being cleared, according to an Orland Park police report. Store security noted that she was picking items at random, and not looking at their prices or sizes, police said.

When security saw two shopping carts had been filled with merchandise, they then contacted the woman whose identity was being stolen, and the Indiana woman said her purse was stolen with her ID inside about a year ago, according to the report.

The shopping woman then brought $3,038.70 worth of merchandise to the checkout line, and tried to buy four $250 gift cards when security took her in for questioning, police said. She was found with the Indiana woman’s driver’s license, Medicare card, Macy’s credit card and a Bank of America Visa card, according to the report.

The woman said a man named Charles gives her the identification to buy items, and in exchange for the merchandise she receives a couple hundred dollars, police said.

Avery C. Bridges, 58, of the 8200 block of South Wolcott Avenue in Chicago, was charged with felony identity theft.

Police report information is provided by the and other law enforcement agencies. Charges are not evidence of guilt. They are a record of police actions taken on a given day, and persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court. If you or a family member are charged or cited and the case is subsequently adjudicated, we encourage you to . We will verify and report the outcome.