June collections over $32,000.00
June 30th
Emily Redman, district attorney for Bryan, Atoka, and Coal Counties reports collections for June this year on bogus check cases and criminal restitution cases put just over $32,000 back into the hands of crime victims.
We have had a good year on collections since the state's fiscal year began on July 1, 2007. The bogus check restitution program has returned over $397,000 to victims of hot check writers since the end of July last year.
The DA's office will continue to vigorously pursue those who victimize businesses and individuals in District 19 with bad checks.
Mrs. Redman's investigators are continuing to make regular arrests of those persons who ignore their obligations to the bogus check program and their court ordered obligations in criminal cases.
Recent arrests include:
Catherine Ann Conditt who was picked up by DA's investigators on an arrest warrant on June 17, 2008. Conditt plead guilty in an embezzlement at a Durant business. Conditt was ordered to pay restitution through the DA's office and had failed to do so when the arrest warrant was issued.
Vernon Lee Sears Jr. was picked on June 24, 2008 up by a DA's investigator on a felony charge of obtaining cash or merchandise by bogus check.
Cathy Mae Smith was arrested by Sheriff's deputies in Logan County Oklahoma on a Bryan County felony warrant on June 27, 2008. Smith was wanted for violating her probation by failing to pay restitution in her hot check case. At the time of her arrest, Smith owed more than $5000.00 in restitution and court costs.
Smith has a long criminal history with convictions for forgery, defrauding an innkeeper, escape from a penal institution, and obtaining cash or merchandise by bogus check. Cathy Mae Smith. Smith is also known as Cathy M. Phillips, Cathy M. Sellers, Cathy M. St. Clair, and Cathy M. Ragle.
Smith will appear before a Bryan County Judge on July 16. The DA's office is grateful for the assistance of the Logan County Sheriff's office in the arrest of Smith.
Investigators want to remind operators of fireworks stands to use caution in taking checks from their customers. Last season we had several local stands that had hundreds of dollars worth of products taken by hot check writers.
Many of these stands are used as fundraisers for scouts, church groups and youth organizations. Operators are urged to treat their fireworks business as any other kind of business transaction and use caution, know your customers, check ID's and make note of the identification presented when receiving checks.