DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — A South Fulton County teenager accused of trying to scam the state of Georgia out of millions is back in jail, days after Henry County authorities dropped bank forgery charges against him.
Charles Turner, 19, was arrested late last year during a Georgia Department of Revenue raid on his mother’s South Fulton County home.
The then-18-year-old would not comment on his case to Channel 2 Investigative Reporter Nicole Carr during this exclusive report.
DOR investigators said Turner developed an elaborate tax return scheme using his online electronics business.
Carr found out the business employed other young people Turner had met online.
While the DOR was just beginning another stage of their investigation during the raid, South Fulton County police took Turner into custody because of outstanding warrants out of Henry County.
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Carr pulled court and police records showing SunTrust Bank had filed a criminal complaint against Turner months earlier, alleging he deposited nearly $70,000 in fraudulent checks in the bank's Eagles Landing location before pulling $18,000 out of a Cobb County location the next day.
On Tuesday, the day Turner was scheduled to be in Henry County Superior Court, Carr found out the case was dismissed. Court records show the forgery charges were dropped on Jan. 17.
An email exchange between a Henry County detective and Turner’s bank revealed that although Turner’s account had a hold placed on it, he actually owned the account.
Because of this, the forgery charges wouldn’t stick.
It’s unclear whether Turner’s account actually held a balance to clear the checks he’d deposited at SunTrust.
When the case was dismissed, Turner was still booked in the Henry County Jail.
Two days later, he was re-arrested and booked in the DeKalb County Jail on warrants filed by the Department of Revenue.
The charges tie back to the alleged tax return scheme and include felony computer theft and attempted theft in an amount larger than $13 million.
Due to anticipated court closings due to inclement weather, Channel 2 Action News was not able to confirm Turner's next court date.
Cox Media Group
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