PLAINFIELD — A Florida man has been brought to Connecticut on identity-theft and attempted-larceny charges following an investigation into an alleged attempt to redirect a Plainfield Public Schools employee’s pay, WINY Radio reported Thursday, citing the Plainfield Police Department.
According to WINY’s October 15 account, police received a report in January that someone posing as a school employee had contacted the district’s payroll department about changing direct-deposit information. The report describes an attempted diversion; it does not identify an actual payment or dollar loss.
WINY reports that Plainfield’s Special Investigations Unit obtained a warrant for financial records associated with the account used in the attempt. Investigators worked with the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office in Florida and identified Jack Hawkins, 33, of Milton, Florida, as the suspect.
Hawkins was taken into custody at the Santa Rosa County Jail September 25 on an arrest warrant, according to the account. Plainfield investigators traveled to Florida October 14 and brought him back to Connecticut.
WINY lists charges of third-degree identity theft and criminal attempt at fifth-degree larceny, a $5,000 court-set bond and a scheduled October 15 arraignment in the Windham Judicial District. Eastern CT News has not independently reviewed the warrant or court docket. No plea, arraignment result or finding of guilt is reported here.
The reported method concerns employee impersonation. It does not establish that the district’s computer network was breached or that other employees were targeted.
As general prevention guidance—not evidence about this case—the FBI’s July 2019 direct-deposit scam advisory recommends extra scrutiny for payroll banking changes, two-factor authentication for sensitive systems and regular checks that pay arrives correctly. It directs fraud victims to the Internet Crime Complaint Center. Employees with a questionable payroll change should promptly contact their payroll office and financial institution.