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ID THIEF ARRESTED

Crook funded his online gambling from other people's accounts

There was another reminder on the importance of safeguarding personal information this week. More than 100 Central Illinois residents had their identities stolen and their money diverted by Robert D. Crutchley (31) who was arrested this week and charged with two counts of felony theft.

DeWitt County Sheriff Roger Massey did not disclose the modus operandi, but said that Crutchley is accused of setting up debit accounts and electronically transferring funds that were used on telephone or Internet gambling sites.

Most of the victims are from the Bloomington-Normal area.

The DeWitt County sheriff said he became involved in the investigation of Crutchley following a complaint about missing funds from a bank account. McLean and Dewitt County investigators joined forces after a relative of Crutchley who lives in McLean County went to police with a similar complaint.

Massey arrested Crutchley in May while the Bloomington man was using a computer at the Bloomington Public Library. Charges had not been filed then, however, because police were still investigating the thefts.

The U.S. Marshals Service finally arrested Crutchley in Plano, Texas.

Massey said Crutchley created bank accounts and then transferred money into them from other people's accounts, having stolen their identities through undisclosed means.

Crutchley used Certegy Check Services, the nation's leading check processor for online gaming, as his clearinghouse for a series of gambling transactions, according to court records.