New York Women Charged with Fraud

NEWS RELEASE 20-069 - MAY 8, 2020
                                                                                  Miller, Danielle     Blas, Ciera
Miller                                                                                                              Blas
The Sarasota County Sheriff's Office arrested two New York women after they attempted to fraudulently withdrawal money from a California woman’s bank account
 
On Thursday just after 3:00 p.m., deputies responded to Chase Bank in the 3600 block of Central Sarasota Parkway for the report of possible fraud. According to bank personnel, two females later identified as Danielle Miller and Ciera Blas, presented a passport card belonging to a client in Los Angeles, and attempted to make an $8,000 withdrawal. Bank employees were alerted to the possible fraud after being notified earlier in the day by another branch, of similar suspicious activity. Deputies quickly responded and conducted a traffic stop on the women’s vehicle.  
 
Detectives identified and contacted the owner of the suspects’ vehicle, who advised he rented the vehicle to a woman in Miami. Through further investigation, the owner also identified a related rental tied to Danielle Miller. The owner provided a copy of Miller’s Arizona driver’s license which confirmed Miller’s lengthy list of prior arrests in New York and New Jersey for fraud-related offenses. Blas was identified using her U.S. passport, which also alerted detectives to several prior arrests for fraud. During a search of the vehicle, deputies recovered more than $25,000 in cash in various Chase envelopes, several fraudulent driver’s licenses bearing Miller’s photo, fraudulent credit cards, and six separate cellphones.
 
The duo was taken into custody and booked into the Sarasota County Correctional Facility. Miller, DOB 10/28/89, is charged with seven counts of Fraud while Blas, DOB 11/23/94, is charged with a single count of Principal to Criminal Use of Personal Identification. The investigation is ongoing and additional charges are pending.