MORGAN CITY, La. (WAFB) – Two suspects have landed behind bars following an investigation into check fraud and identity theft in Morgan City, police said.
William Pitzer and Atanacio Guerrero, Jr. are facing charges. Authorities said the investigation into Pitzer and Guerrero started in late March.
According to the Morgan City Police Department, Pitzer allegedly identified himself as someone else and cashed a check at a business. A couple of days later, a second report about a similar incident came in from another business, investigators said. They added that Pitzer is accused of again identifying himself as someone else before writing fraudulent checks to purchase items.
Investigators explained that they initially did not have Pitzer identified as the suspect. They started conducting extra patrols as a way to identify and locate him.
Pitzer was found walking in the area of Second…
This category refers to crimes committed by employees or insiders against their own organizations. It is often the most damaging because the perpetrator has authorized access to systems.
- Asset Misappropriation: The most common form, involving the theft of company resources. This ranges from simple “skimming” (taking cash before it’s recorded) to complex schemes involving the theft of inventory or intellectual property.
- Payroll Fraud: Employees may create “ghost employees” on the system, falsify their own timesheets to claim unworked overtime, or divert salary payments to their own accounts.
- Financial Statement Fraud: Management deliberately misrepresents the company’s financial health by inflating revenue or hiding liabilities to attract investors or meet performance bonuses.