Authorities in rural West Virginia arrested a Burger King manager this week for allegedly ripping off his own neighbors with his America Online account.
Though details are sketchy, Robert Michael Teter, 32, is accused of using his AOL account to charge merchandise to other people's checking accounts through the AOL Store.
"He's charged with unlawfully, knowingly, accessing a computer service or computer network for the purpose of obtaining money, property or services," said Carrie Coombs, Teter's court-appointed attorney. She declined further comment.
Computer fraud artists typically target victims across a wide geographical area in an effort to elude detection. But Teter allegedly ran his scheme right in his own backyard, targeting folks in and around his home town of Terra Alta, West Virginia, population about 1,600.
Teter's father runs a tax service in Terra Alta. Locals are speculating that the younger Teter may have obtained checking account information through the business, according to Kathy Plum, a reporter with the Dominion Post, a West Virginia newspaper.
"It's not that hard to get a checking account number," said Plum. "If you think about it, umpteen people can get checking account numbers."
Lieutenant Joe Stiles of the Preston County Sheriff's Department, who led the investigation, said that Teter had targeted local citizens with his fraudulent activities. He declined to say how many victims were affected, or how much money Teter's scheme had cost them.
Stiles said that several citizens registered complaints with the sheriff's office during November and December, saying that their phone bills had been overcharged. Stiles traced the charges to an AOL account, and throught the help of the online service provider, traced the account back to Teter.
AOL spokesman Rich D'Amato said that the company will surrender any information requested by a criminal law enforcement agency.
"In a civil case, we will give our members 10 days to two weeks to respond," D'Amato said. "But in a criminal case we act immediately."
Stiles said the investigation is still underway, and Plum says more locals are coming forward with concerns that they might have been victims as well.
Plum says she's still confused by the reports from the sheriff's office, since Stiles won't provide more details about how Teter actually pulled off the scam, or how much money was stolen.
The prosecutor and Teter's attorney are also boggled by the charges.
"My understanding is that it's computer fraud," said Melvin C. Snyder III, the county prosecutor. "Until I get the officer's report, I'm not going to know much about him personally."
Coombs, Teter's attorney, said she has not met the defendant, even though he was arrested on Tuesday.
