Secaucus woman accused of stealing $8,800 in fraudulent check scheme, police say

A Secaucus woman stole nearly $9,000 by depositing two checks from a fraudulent bank account, then spent the money within days, authorities said.

Maritza Velez was arrested Oct. 15 for filings made July 8 and 10, Secaucus Police Chief Dennis Miller said. She was charged with theft by deception and forgery.

According to Miller and a criminal complaint, Velez, 44, wrote a fraudulent $3,900 Bank of America check from an account that did not exist on July 8 and asked his mother to deposit it into the 44-year-old woman’s account at Savings Shelter in Secaucus.