Burlington Free Press:
A woman from St. Albans who was told by collection companies that she owed thousands of dollars on accounts she didn’t open has learned she was the victim of identity theft, said Vermont State Police.
The unidentified woman reported on Dec. 31 that collection agencies were calling about financial matters and accounts she knew nothing about.
A month-long investigation in St. Albans, Jeffersonville and Burlington revealed that the woman voluntarily gave her personal information to Jessica Hood, 22, a former skin care products company consultant with Arbonne, during an Arbonne gathering last summer. The woman told police she wanted to become a consultant and was told by Hood that providing her identity information was part of the process.
Police said Hood used the woman’s information to open accounts with multiple businesses, and charged thousands of dollars in purchases on the accounts, over the course of several months.
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