EATON, Ind. — A Delaware County woman was arrested after she allegedly used fake documents to claim she purchased a house, without her husband knowing.
According to court documents, on Wednesday, Feb. 28, an Eaton Police Department deputy was on routine patrol when he noticed a U-Haul truck parked in the driveway of a vacant property.
When the officer pulled up to the house to investigate, he was met by a man and a woman who were in the process of moving into the house. The woman allegedly gave the officer electronic documents that showed the couple had bought the house.
(NOTE: 13News is not naming the suspects at this time since formal charges have not been filed by prosecutors.)
The couple then told the officer that their realtor allowed them into the house and gave them the keys from a lock box. However, the couple was unable to provide the official title of the home. They allegedly told the officer they did not have the information because it was subject to a "60-day waiting period."
The officer then contacted the lead realtor mentioned by the couple. The realtor allegedly told the officer the man had provided them with falsified bank statements and the couple had not properly closed on the house. The realtor then told the officer the couple should not be on the property.
During an interview with officers, the woman allegedly insisted she was allowed onto the property by her realtor. The couple was then allowed to retrieve their personal belongings from the house while under the supervision of an officer.
After the couple left the property, the realtor then entered the house and found a man asleep in one of the rooms. The man was described as intoxicated by police and was handcuffed for safety reasons. The lead realtor then also noticed the lockbox originally containing the key to the property had been smashed open and placed inside a desk drawer.
Further investigation revealed even more purchase documents had been falsified.
The couple was then called back to the property to retrieve any remaining personal belongings from the initial incident. After completing a walkthrough of the property with police, the couple was then placed in handcuffs and arrested.
The woman allegedly told police that all dealings related to purchasing the home were conducted by her. She told police her husband was completely unaware of her fraud. She allegedly admitted to altering a bank statement and also finding an unlocked window at the house, crawling inside, unlocking all the windows and smashing the lockbox.
She insisted her husband was unaware of all her crimes.
Court documents also showed that the couple had obtained a tow truck by using a bad check, but the woman did not drive it because she "didn't know how to drive a stick."
In an interview with police, the man said he was entirely unaware of his wife's crimes. Officers decided against arresting the man for fraud, burglary and criminal mischief and instead only arrested him for residential entry and possession of stolen property.
The woman was arrested on preliminarily charges of burglary, falsifying information, residential entry and obstruction of justice.
