SURPRISE, Ariz. — A Phoenix woman who has allegedly stolen mail across the Valley was arrested by Surprise police Wednesday after the department served a search warrant at a home in Wittman.
The Surprise Police Department said it had been investigating Michelle Lidster, 51, for several fraud-related crimes for months.
The department has been investigating Lidster since January when detectives learned she was using fraudulent checks at businesses in the area, according to a statement from the department.
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Lidster was seen on video stealing mail from a residential neighborhood in Surprise in April, officials said.
"Using video provided by the community, detectives were able to positively identify the suspect and learned she may be committing similar crimes in other parts of the Valley," the statement said. "Surprise Police began collaborating with other local law enforcement agencies to gather and share information on Lidster’s various fraud schemes, which ultimately led to Lidster’s arrest."
Lidster was booked into the Maricopa County Intake and Release Jail on nine felony charges and one misdemeanor:
- Prohibited possessor (class 4 felony)
- Aggravated ID theft (class 3 felony)
- Illegal control of enterprise (class 2 felony)
- Trafficking stolen property (class 2 felony)
- Fraudulent use of a credit card (class 6 felony)
- Fraudulent schemes and artifices (class 2 felony)
- Theft – credit card (class 5 felony)
- Possession of a forgery device (class 5 felony)
- Possession of a forged instrument (class 3 felony)
- Theft – control property (class 1 misdemeanor)
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