Crime & Safety

Pair Charged in Bannockburn, Lake Forest Crime Spree

Grand Jury indicts two women for money laundering, use of counterfeit credit cards at Lake Forest and Bannockburn Walgreens.

Two women who attempted to use re-encoded credit cards in May at Walgreens in Bannockburn and Lake Forest were indicted by the Lake County Grand Jury Wednesday for money laundering, identity theft and use of counterfeit credit cards, according to a report from the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office.

One of the women, Tannecha Freeman, 30, of Carpentersville was also charged with two counts of criminal enterprise, a Class 1 Felony, along with nine counts of identity theft, a Class 3 Felony, four counts of money laundering, a Class 3 Felony and two counts of use of a counterfeit credit card, once as a Class 3 Felony and once as a Class 4 Felony.

The other woman, Patricia Montgomery, 31, of Chicago, was charged with seven counts of identity theft, three counts of money laundering and the same two counts of use of a counterfeit credit card as Freeman.

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Bannockburn Police were originally sent to Walgreens in Bannockburn May 29 after the store manager called to say he felt two women were using fraudulent credit cards. The manager was notified earlier that day the pair had been at the Lake Forest store, according to Bannockburn Police reports.

After questioning Freeman and examining records at Walgreens, police learned the credit cards Freeman and Montgomery were trying to use were originally other credit cards which had been altered, according to Bannockburn Police reports. “They were re-encoded credit cards,” Bannockburn Police Chief Ron Price said. All Bannockburn purchase were declined.

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Freeman was arrested in Bannockburn May 29 and in Lake Forest Nov. 20. Bannockburn Police obtained an arrest warrant for Montgomery Sept. 11 after further investigation.

If convicted on all counts, Freeman could face between 37 and 103 years in prison while Montgomery could be looking at between 23 and 58 years in jail. They will be arraigned Jan. 22 at Lake County Criminal Court in Waukegan. At that time, they will have the opportunity to plead guilty or not guilty.


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