A New York man allegedly used another woman’s identity and financial information to qualify for an apartment before leaving the housing development with more than $14,000 in unpaid rent.
Kevin Whitman, 28, of Farmington faces five criminal charges after investigators accused him of submitting fraudulent application documents containing another person’s income and financial information.
Authorities have not disclosed whether the woman knew Whitman or how he allegedly obtained her personal and financial records.
New York State Police arrested Whitman on July 30 after executing a search warrant at a Farmington residence.
Fraudulent Financial Documents Allegedly Secured the Apartment
The investigation began in April after a woman reported that her personal identifying information had been used without permission in connection with a residential lease. State Police investigators determined that Whitman had allegedly used her information during an apartment application, according to RochesterFirst.
Police say Whitman submitted fraudulent documents containing income and financial information belonging to another person. The records allegedly made it appear that he satisfied the property’s financial screening requirements.
The application was accepted, and Whitman obtained the residential lease. Investigators accuse Whitman of using information taken from an identity-theft victim to support the application. After moving into the apartment, Whitman allegedly failed to make the required rent payments. State Police placed the housing development’s loss above $14,000.
Whitman Faces Five Criminal Charges
Whitman was charged with first-degree identity theft, third-degree grand larceny, second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, making a false financial statement and first-degree scheme to defraud. State Police processed him at the Canandaigua barracks and transported him to the Ontario County Jail for centralized arraignment.
Investigators said they believe there may be additional victims and that the investigation remains active. The charges are allegations, and no plea or final court disposition has been reported.
An Identity-Theft Victim Can Request the Rental Records
Someone who discovers an unfamiliar lease should contact the landlord or property manager and state that the application was submitted through identity theft. The victim should request copies of the application, lease, income documents, identification, signatures, payment records and contact information supplied by the applicant.
IdentityTheft.gov allows victims to create an FTC Identity Theft Report and a recovery plan. The site also provides sample letters for requesting business records related to the identity theft.
The property should be asked to preserve application-system logs, email addresses, telephone numbers, uploaded files, surveillance footage and records showing how the applicant’s identity was verified.
The False Lease May Affect Tenant-Screening Reports
Rental history can appear in specialty consumer reports used by landlords to evaluate future applications. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says tenant-screening reports may contain rental debts, eviction records, employment information and data drawn from credit reports.
A victim should ask the property which tenant-screening company it used and request a copy of any report containing the fraudulent lease or unpaid rent.
If housing is denied or offered only with a higher deposit, co-signer or other unfavorable condition because of a screening report, federal law generally requires the landlord to identify the company that provided the report. The applicant may request a free copy within 60 days.
Credit Reports Should Also Be Checked and Frozen
The victim should review reports from Equifax, Experian and TransUnion through AnnualCreditReport.com for unfamiliar addresses, collections or accounts.
A credit freeze can be placed separately with all three nationwide bureaus. The Federal Trade Commission says freezes are free, remain in place until lifted and can prevent identity thieves from opening additional credit accounts.
A freeze may not remove a fraudulent rental record already reported, so any false lease, collection account or address must still be disputed directly.