New York pair jailed in South Strabane identity theft case
A man and woman from New York are in custody after being accused of using a stolen identity to spend more than $3,000 on cellphones at Walmart in South Strabane Township.
District Judge Mark Wilson sent the suspects, Jessica K. Cocco, 40, and Jose Miguel Jorge Barruos, 31, to Washington County jail, each on $100,000 bond, after South Strabane police arrested them about 2 p.m. Monday at the store at 30 Trinity Point, court records show.
Walmart’s global investigations notified the store that a vehicle that had been used in several recent thefts was in its parking lot, police stated in the affidavit.
Police said officers found the pair at the vehicle before they left the area.
Police accuse Cocco of having an illegitimate driver’s license, and conspiring with Barruos to purchase three iPhones from the store on another person’s account for $3,347.
Cocco lives in the city of New York, while Barruos is from New City in upstate New York.
Both are charged with conspiracy, forgery, access device fraud, theft, identity theft and receiving stolen property.