HALL COUNTY, Ga. — A Clarkesville couple faces 15 felony charges each after using a stolen credit card to make nearly $5,000 in fraudulent retail purchases across Hall County.
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Wendell Burt Cooper, 65 and Sandra Ruth Cooper, 61, were arrested on Oct. 13, following an investigation by the Hall County Sheriff’s Office.
The investigation began after someone filed an online report with the sheriff’s office on Sept. 25 detailing numerous fraudulent charges on her account.
The victim realized her credit card was missing from her purse after noticing the unauthorized transactions, noting she had last used the card on Sept. 22 at a business on South Enota Drive in Gainesville.
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Investigators determined that Wendell Cooper found the victim’s credit card on the ground outside the Gainesville business.
He and Sandra Cooper subsequently used the card at nine businesses across Hall County on Sept. 22 and Sept. 23, accumulating a total of $4,936.10 in unauthorized purchases.
Property crimes investigators identified the suspects after visiting each of the nine retail locations, interviewing store employees and reviewing security video footage from inside and outside the businesses.
Deputies with the Sheriff’s Office Warrant Service Unit arrested both suspects at their home in Clarkesville.
Wendell Cooper and Sandra Cooper were each charged with one count of financial transaction card theft and 14 counts of financial transaction card fraud. Both remain in custody at the Hall County Jail.
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