EXPERTS: FAST CASH FOR METH IS A KEY MOTIVE FOR IDENTITY THEFT

Nation's Fastest Growing Crime Increasingly Is Linked To Highly Addictive Drug

MOUNT VERNON -- Methamphetamine addicts are
increasingly stealing other people's identities -- and using their credit
cards -- to generate quick cash to buy drugs. "Right now, meth is one of
the primary reasons people are stealing mail and using the identity of
others to obtain money," said Jeff Scobba, a U.S. postal inspector based in
Seattle.

Identity theft is the nation's fastest-growing crime, affecting an
estimated 500,000 to 700,000 people each year, according to the state
Attorney General's Office.

Meth use has been on the rise since the late 1990s. In 2001, Washington
ranked third in the nation in the number of illegal meth labs discovered,
the state Department of Ecology reported. Skagit County's drug enforcement
unit has recorded 22 meth lab busts so far this year, up from 10 in 2001.

Police and prosecutors report a growing link between meth and
identity-theft rings. Using advanced technology, identity thieves have gone
from forging stolen checks to producing volumes of fake checks on
sophisticated computers, scanners and printers, the Skagit Valley Herald
reported Monday.

Mount Vernon police Detective Tom Wenzl, who specializes in computer
crimes, figures three out of every four identity-theft cases are
drug-related, though the drug may not always be meth.

Statistics linking meth and identity theft are difficult to pin down
because of the way crime data is categorized. Addicts may consider identity
theft a low-risk crime because it takes time for police to follow complex
paper trails.

Called "ice," "crank" or "crystal," highly addictive meth stimulates
pleasure sensors in the brain and produces a high that lasts 12 to 18
hours. Meth users, sellers and producers tend to be poor, unemployed and
suffering from severe side effects. Addicts, who stay awake for days at a
time, can become paranoid, edgy and delusional with continual use of the drug.

"They start not to care about anything," said Lt. Mark Couey, head of the
narcotics unit under the State Patrols statewide Investigative Assistance
Division.

The psychological effects of meth also may play a role in motivating
thieves to raid mailboxes and trash bins for financial information.

"It creates an itch, and one way to scratch it is to get caught up in this
frenetic behavior," said Gene Willett, a deputy Skagit County prosecutor.

Legislators recently toughened the penalties for identity theft, making a
first-time offense over $1,500 punishable by three years in prison.

Some steps to protect against identity theft:

- -Don't give out Social Security or bank account numbers over the phone or
Internet.

- -Don't leave outgoing mail in your mailbox. Don't leave mail overnight. If
you plan on being away from home, request a vacation hold from the U.S.
Postal Service.

- -Consider obtaining a locking mailbox approved by the Postal Service.

- -Pay attention to what time of the month your bills arrive. Call creditors
if your mail doesn't arrive. Someone might have changed your mailing
address to receive your mail. Make sure credit card solicitations and other
financial information is shredded or ripped apart before it goes in the trash.

- -If someone who stole your ID is caught and convicted, ask the prosecuting
attorney to have the court issue a "correcting public records" order. You
can use it to correct your public records damaged by identity theft.