AHOSKIE, N.C. — A woman from Ahoskie, North Carolina was arrested on dozens of charges related to identity theft, the state's Department of Insurance said Tuesday.
Mary Vaughan Early, 57, was charged with 23 counts of identity theft, 21 counts of attempting to obtain property by false pretense, two counts of obtaining property by false pretense and 23 counts of common law forgery.
According to a news release from the North Carolina Department of Insurance, Early forged the names of her victims, and used their names, birthdates and Social Security numbers on life insurance applications. Her husband’s, son’s and daughter’s names were listed as the beneficiaries.
She was also accused of receiving loans against two of her policies and filing a death benefit claim on another policy. The department said she obtained $818.66 in life insurance death benefits and $225.36 in premium loans. She tried to get an additional $165,000 in benefits.
The victims were all related to Early and the crimes happened over five years, from 2017 to 2022. She was arrested on Dec. 6 and released on a $161,000 bond.
Anyone in North Carolina who suspects insurance fraud or other white-collar crimes can anonymously report it by calling the N.C. Department of Insurance Criminal Investigations Division at 919-807-6840. The toll-free number is 888-680-7684.
