News

Woman accused of stealing $200,000 from credit unions at ATMs

April 4, 2010

Tampa's WFTS-TV reportsthat a 41-year-old woman caught on camera withdrawing money from an ATM is the mastermind behind an identity-theft and fraud ring in Florida. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement says Vanessa Rideau and her accomplices have stolen more than $200,000 from credit unions over the past three years.

Twenty-one suspects have been arrested in what has been coined "Operation Long Hair."

Investigators have issued warrants for 21 additional members of the ring, including Rideau. According to officials, Rideau recruited accomplices to open accounts at credit unions. After receiving their ATM cards in the mail, the suspects sold the cards and the corresponding PINs to Rideau. Rideau then made empty-envelope deposits at ATMs into the recently opened accounts and immediately withdrew cash.