Ashley N. Garr, $207,000 Bank Account Fraud, Missouri 2016

Kansas City, Mo. – In a shocking case of financial exploitation, Ashley N. Garr, a 33-year-old in-home health care nursing assistant from St. Joseph, Missouri, has been charged with stealing bank account information from one of her clients to illegally transfer more than $207,000 out of her account.

According to the indictment, Garr became friendly with a woman identified as ‘PLR’ and stole checks and checking account information from her in the fall of 2016. Garr allegedly used the stolen checking account information to pay her personal expenses directly from PLR’s checking account.

The indictment alleges that Garr fraudulently transferred at least $207,638 from the checking account of PLR. Two of the wire fraud counts relate to a scheme in which Garr allegedly stole personal information from persons she was assisting as a home health care aide and used the stolen information to prepare two false and fraudulent tax returns in 2016, claiming refunds totaling $20,831.

The false tax returns allegedly involved Garr’s personal income tax returns filed in 2015, 2016, and 2017. The indictment alleges that Garr inflated her income in returns filed in 2015 and 2016. Garr claimed $61,725 in wages during 2014, and federal withholding of $30,851. Garr claimed $89,206 in wages in 2015, and federal withholding of $44,593. Garr allegedly failed to report her gross income of approximately $212,892 and reported a gross income of only $26,208 for 2016.

The indictment also contains a forfeiture allegation, which would require Garr to forfeit to the government any property derived from the proceeds of the alleged offenses, including $207,638.

Defendant: Ashley N. Garr, 33, of St. Joseph, Missouri. Charges: Eight counts of wire fraud, three counts of aggravated identity theft, and three counts of filing false tax returns. City and State: St. Joseph, Missouri. Date: Fall 2016. Outcome: Currently indicted.

Garrison cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.