LEHI, Utah (ABC4) — Lehi police are searching for victims of fraud after a months long investigation revealed an independent financial advisor used client information to take out loans for himself.
According to court documents, an initial report was made to the Lehi Police Department (LPD) by an alleged fraud victim who received a notice from a collection agency for a loan out of a payday loan company. They didn’t recognize the account that was in their name, and when they followed up with the company, they learned that their social security number, and driver’s license was used in the application.
The alleged victim began to inspect the documents and realized that the copy of their driver’s license was a picture she had allegedly sent to a financial advisor she had worked with.
According to the probable cause statement, Lance Hancock, 53, had allegedly used the victim’s information to take out a $2500 loan for himself. It was reported to the police that Hancock is a family friend of the victim, and that he allegedly asked for money frequently due to being “in a poor financial situation.”
After receiving the report, LPD began an investigation into who had submitted the application for a loan. Allegedly Hancock made a new email address that mirrored the victim’s name.
LPD issued several subpoenas and found that IP addresses that allegedly traced back to Hancock, and the bank account used for the deposits was also in Hancock’s name.
Hancock was arrested and booked into Utah County Jail on Feb. 4 for three felony counts including forgery, identify fraud, and theft exceeding $1500. He was later released from the county jail on Feb. 5.
LPD said in a statement on Facebook that their investigation is still ongoing, and they are seeking out “individuals that may have had financials dealings” with Hancock, seeking anyone who were concerned about “questionable actions” by Hancock. Anyone matching this is advised to contact LPD.
Charges are allegations only. All arrested persons are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
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