Hundreds of Thousands Stolen in Fake ID Scam at Florida CU
Corretta Bates allegedly targets Suncoast Credit Union branches and member accounts.
A Florida woman is suspected of stealing $165,000 from the $17.4 billion Suncoast Credit Union in Tampa by using counterfeit driver’s licenses to open accounts, obtain lines of credit and steal cash advances.
After being on the run for months, Coretta Rena Bates, 31, was arrested in Atlanta on April 3 and appeared at a federal court hearing. She did not enter a plea and was released on a $10,000 bond. Her case was transferred to U.S. District Court in Tampa last week.
Bates was charged with two felony counts of bank fraud and two felony counts of aggravated identity theft, according to a federal indictment.
Federal prosecutors alleged Bates used her own photo and placed it on fake North Carolina driver licenses that included the names, dates of birth and driver’s license numbers of third-party victims.
She used these phony driver’s licenses to open accounts at Suncoast and other financial institutions. After opening accounts, Bates allegedly applied for lines of credit. She then allegedly took cash advances against the fraudulently obtained lines of credit with no intention of making repayments, according to the indictment.
In October 2023, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) in Tampa said it began a fraud investigation with the assistance of Suncoast, which provided security video photos of the suspect that helped lead to her arrest.
HCSO and Suncoast would not reveal how many Suncoast branches were targeted by Bates or how many member accounts were affected by the fraud scheme. However, HSCO said victims were identified from all over the southeastern United States.
“As in all cases of fraud, Suncoast works with law enforcement for the protection of our members,” Suncoast Chief Risk Officer Jackie Gilbert said in a prepared statement. “It is a gross injustice to have hardworking people at risk because of greed or other sinister motives and we will continue to work with law enforcement and prosecute fraud cases to the fullest extent of the law.”
For security reasons, Suncoast declined to release other details about this fraud case.