An Ocala woman stands accused of fraudulently obtaining credit cards and completing more than $35,000 in unauthorized transactions.
Dikita Lashon Floyd, 54, of 4492 NW 22nd Ave., was charged Sept. 23 with organized fraud of between $20,000 and $15,000. A total of 45 transactions were completed or attempted between Aug. 14, 2018 and July 22, 2019, resulting in a total loss of $35,184.15.
An investigator from JP Morgan Chase Bank contacted Ocala Police on Aug. 5 about 24 accounts that were compromised. The bank investigator said 22 of the accounts were business credit cards in which Floyd was added to the account and issued an employee card in her name. The other two accounts were consumer credit cards where Floyd added her name as an authorized user. The addresses where the cards were sent were listed as Ocala addresses, according to the OPD report.
The bank investigatory said it was unknown how the accounts were originally compromised but the cards were later accessed and Floyd’s name was added via telephone. He said various “spoofed” phone numbers were used that showed random U.S. geographical locations, the report said.
An OPD officer noted that the cards were mailed to several Ocala addresses, including Floyd’s. Only five of the acquired cards were used, and the completed transactions were conducted at Best Buy, Sprint Wireless, Florida Credit Union, and Regions Bank – all in Ocala, according to the report.
Representatives of Regions Bank and Florida Credit Union said the cards were used to obtain cash. Floyd provided a photo ID at both banks and surveillance photos at Regions Bank confirmed it was Floyd who made the withdrawal. Subpoenaed records from Spring showed the cards were used to make payments to an account in Floyd’s name, the report said.
On Sept. 23, Floyd responded to the police department to be interviewed. She said she knew nothing about the cards or transactions. When asked if she had been receiving credit cards in the mail in her name, she said she only received two from her employer, according to the report.
When shown the list of credit cards mailed out and the transactions completed, Floyd then said she recalled using the cards at Florida Credit Union, Best Buy and Regions Bank. She said she did it for work, as her job was to accept the cards and then purchase laptops and cell phones and mail them back to her employer, the report said.
Floyd said she took cash from the banks and mailed it to her employer, keeping $300 each time. She said she was receiving two cards a week. Floyd was unable to provide the name of the business she was working for but named her boss as Robert Lavern and provided a phone number for him. Attempts to reach Lavern were unsuccessful, according to the report.
Floyd was taken to the Marion County Jail, where she was released later in the day on $15,000 bond.