A Mamou woman has been booked with more counts, and an alleged accomplice has also been arrested, in an on-going investigation into identity theft and fraud against a St. Landry Parish nursing home resident.
Back in February, Tranessa Compton, 30, was booked with 259 counts of Access Device Fraud, 16 counts of Identity Theft and 4 counts of Contributing to the Delinquency of a Juvenile.
This week, she was booked with Exploitation of Persons with Infirmities; 112 counts of access device fraud, 57 counts of identity theft and three counts contributing to the delinquency of juveniles.
Also arrested this week in the case was Jonas Wayne Patin, 35, also of Mamou, booked with two counts Exploitation of Persons with Infirmities, 64 counts access device fraud and six counts contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile.
The investigation began in January, said St. Landry Parish Sheriff Bobby Guidroz, and Compton was first arrested on January 31, and booked in connection with the alleged exploitation of a nursing home resident.
In February, a second nursing home resident came forward with similar complaints, after that victim received a notification that the credit card had a past due balance. The victim said there wasn't a balance on that credit card. It turns out that the fraudulent activity on the card - without the victim's permission or knowledge - some time after November 2021, Guidroz said.
The investigation found fraudulent activity starting on November 17 and continuing through December 20. More than $3,500 was charged on the card, and more than $12,000 in fraudulent charges were attempted. Compton also allegedly tried to open a new credit line in the victim's name, but she wasn't successful, Guidroz said.
Phone recordings were obtained from the credit card company and Tranessa Compton allegedly could be heard identifying herself as the victim, the sheriff said. She allegedly supplied the victim’s personal information, including credit card number, date of birth, photo identification card and social security number to gain access to the victim’s account. Tranessa Compton also alegedly supplied her personal phone number and a personal email address in an attempt to have the victim’s identification “verified” for the account, the sheriff said.
The calls Tranessa Compton allegedly made to the credit card company were in regards to the credit card no longer working and attempted to have the fraud alerts removed from the account, the sheriff said.
As video and photographic evidence became available, Tranessa Compton and Jonas Wayne Patin allegedly could be seen using the stolen credit card on numerous occasions. Both Tranessa Compton and Jonas Patin were observed using the stolen credit card while in the presence of juveniles, deputies allege.
Additionally, according to video and photographic evidence, Jonas Patin was also observed using the credit card that belonged to the first victim, which was first reported to the St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office on January 3, 2022. Jonas Patin was responsible for 60 transactions and 1 attempted transaction totaling $3,609.13, deputies allege.
When questioned by detectives on April 7, 2022, Tranessa Compton initially denied any involvement and later replied that she made a “mistake”. She was transported to the St. Landry Parish Jail and booked with exploitation of persons with infirmities, 112 counts of access device fraud, 57 counts of identity theft and 3 counts of contributing to the delinquency of juveniles.
After numerous attempts, detectives were unable to interview Jonas Wayne Patin in regards to the first financial exploitation complaint. An arrest warrant was issued on February 15, 2022 for exploitation of the infirmed, 61 counts of access device fraud and 3 counts of contributing to the delinquency of juveniles.
On April 7, 2022, Jonas Patin was booked at the St. Landry Parish Jail for the arrest warrant issued previously. Detectives then booked Jonas Patin with the following additional charges in regards to the second complaint: exploitation of the infirmed, 3 counts of access device fraud, 3 counts of contributing to the delinquency of juveniles.
