Dec. 29—PRINCETON — A Mercer County woman is facing felony charges of fraudulent use of an access device after an investigation by the West Virginia State Police.

Melissa Williams, 52, of Bluefield was arrested Wednesday and charged with 13 felony counts of fraudulent use of an access device, according to court records at the Mercer County Magistrate Clerk’s Office.

The case started Nov. 30 when Senior Trooper H.E. Ingraham with the West Virginia State Police Princeton detachment received a complaint about a larceny at a home near Princeton, according to a criminal complaint filed by Ingraham. The victim said that Williams had stolen a necklace valued at about $2,500 and had taken her bank card and withdrawn $718 without her consent.

“The victim provided the undersigned trooper with a bank statement for the month of November where she advised the undersigned trooper of several charges made in which she did not have any knowledge of,” Ingraham said in the criminal complaint. “The victim advised the undersigned trooper taht the accused was her in-home caregiver, which provided her access to the bank card.”

Ingraham said in the criminal complaint that the victim stated that an electronic tablet of an unknown make, which was provided to her through a government assistance program, had been stolen.

“The victim advised that the accused had kept the card from her on several occasions, and only returned the card after being confronted and informed she was no longer going to be the victim’s caregiver,” Ingraham said in the criminal complaint..

Ingraham obtained a bank statement and saw that the card was physically used at several ATMs and other locations throughout Mercer County, according to the criminal complaint. The victim advised Ingraham about 13 charges on her account identified on the bank statement to fraudulent.

Williams is currently free on bond, according to court records.

According to the West Virginia Code, “any person who knowingly, willfully and with intent to defraud possessed a counterfeit or unauthorized access device or who knowingly, willfully and with intent to defraud, uses, produces or traffics any counterfeit or unauthorized access device shall be guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned in the penitentiary not more than 10 years, or both.”

— Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com

Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@bdtonline.com