Mt. official credit card fraud victim |
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Published
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Fri, 31 Aug 2007 18:30
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HELENA, Mont. (AP) - Fraudulent charges totaling more than $17,000 appeared on Secretary of State Brad Johnson's state-issued credit card this summer.US Bank removed the charges from the account, said Bowen Greenwood, a spokesman for Johnson.The secretary learned of the fraud when he was at a Council of State Governments meeting to propose a resolution to create a rotating, regional primary election. His credit card was rejected when he tried to pay for his hotel room, Greenwood said. Johnson paid with his personal card.Later, he learned that more than a dozen charges he did not recognize were on his bill. Many of the fraudulent charges were for hotel rooms and air fare. The total was $17,254.Greenwood said Johnson did not misplace his card or lend it to anyone.'The logical conclusion is that someone got a hold of the card number,' Greenwood said.The credit card company first noticed the unusual charges and froze the account, said Devin Garrity, program officer for the purchasing card program in the Montana Department of Administration.'They knew the charges were fraudulent and shut the card off,' he said. 'They have got a pretty good (fraud detection) system in place and we have got all the assurances that we did not pay the charges.'Johnson was issued a new card.Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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