A Missouri lender says a man obtained a $6,000 loan using false documents, then applied for another loan with an ID bearing the same photograph but a different name. Employees at Tower Loan alerted Jefferson City police after comparing the applications, according to an October 30 sworn probable-cause statement.
Officers arrested Justin Alan Vanley, a Kansas resident, on October 29, 2026, when he returned to the Jefferson City branch to collect the second loan. A sworn police statement says he first provided false information about his identity before acknowledging that he had used forged identification.
Cole County prosecutors filed two felony charges the following day: forgery and attempted stealing of $750 or more. Both filed counts concern the attempted loan at the Jefferson City branch.
The new allegations involve a man who pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft in a separate federal prosecution in Kansas in 2017. In that case, Vanley admitted using a postal employee’s identifying information to obtain a credit card, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Loan Employees Found the Same Photograph on Two Different IDs
A Tower Loan district supervisor told police the first application was made at the company’s Joplin branch. The same customer then sought $6,000 at its Jefferson City location using a different name and address, according to the sworn police account.
The Jefferson City manager and district supervisor provided police with copies of the two identification cards, which were made to resemble Missouri driver’s licenses. They also supplied pay stubs and bank statements that the applicant had emailed to the lender.
Vanley Told Police the Bank Named on His Documents Did Not Exist
Jefferson City police officer Jensen Stevens detained Vanley at Tower Loan at approximately 2:51 p.m. on October 29. According to the sworn probable-cause statement, Vanley acknowledged emailing the forged pay stubs and bank statements and said the bank named on them did not exist.
The officer said Vanley described working with two other people on similar activities at locations in Missouri and Kansas. A check with the Missouri Department of Revenue indicated that the names and addresses on the two licenses belonged to real people; the person whose information was used in Jefferson City was notified and listed as an identity-theft victim.
Prosecutors Filed Two Felonies, Not a Separate Identity Theft Count
The October 30 felony complaint charges Vanley with Class D forgery for allegedly presenting fraudulent identification cards, pay stubs and bank statements as genuine. Its second count alleges Class E attempted stealing involving at least $750 in cash. The police statement identifies the attempted Jefferson City transaction as a $6,000 request, while the filed count uses the statutory charging threshold.
Stevens’ probable-cause statement lists suspected identity theft alongside forgery and stealing. The prosecutor’s actual two-count complaint, however, does not contain a separate identity-theft charge.
The Arrest Warrant Set a $6,000 Cash-Only Bond
An October 30 arrest warrant set a $6,000 cash-only bond and barred Vanley from contacting the victim. Case.net records the warrant as served on October 30, after his arrest the previous afternoon.
His Earlier Federal Plea Involved a Postal Worker’s Identity
In a January 6, 2017 announcement, federal prosecutors said Vanley pleaded guilty to aggravated identity theft after obtaining a U.S. Postal Service roster containing personal information for two employees from a co-defendant. He admitted using one worker’s identity to apply for a Chase Marriott credit card with a $32,000 limit and intercepting the card when it arrived in the mail.
Vanley was one of 13 defendants charged in a broader case that federal prosecutors described as a $3.5 million identity-theft scheme. That figure concerned the wider prosecution, not an amount established as Vanley’s personal proceeds.
What to Do if Someone Applies for a Loan Using Your Identity
The Federal Trade Commission advises people who discover an unfamiliar loan or credit account to contact the lender’s fraud department and review their credit reports for other accounts they did not authorize. Victims can file a report through IdentityTheft.gov and place free credit freezes with Equifax, Experian and TransUnion to make it harder for identity thieves to open new accounts.
People can also request application and transaction records from businesses where their identity was misused. The FTC explains the documentation needed for those requests, which can help victims dispute accounts opened without their permission.