Bessemer woman sentenced for credit card theft

BESSEMER — A Bessemer woman was sentenced to jail for credit card theft last week.

Karin Marie George, 37, was sentenced to three months in jail and two years probation for stealing/retaining a financial transaction device without consent Wednesday.

George pleaded guilty to the possible 4-year felony in November as part of a plea agreement that had two other illegal use of a financial device charges dismissed at sentencing.

The charges stem from an incident on Aug. 30, Gogebic County Prosecutor Nick Jacobs told the Daily Globe, when George was able to take a picture of someone’s credit card and later presented it as her own.

Jacobs said the pre-sentence report indicated a possible sentence of zero to three months in jail, with the Michigan Department of Corrections recommending three months in jail and 18 months probation.

He said he requested the probation be extended another six months, which Circuit Judge Michael Pope agreed to.

George will be eligible for work crew while serving her sentence at the Gogebic County Sheriff’s Department and will be prohibited from owning or using a credit card while on probation, unless it’s solely in her name.

Credit card theft is on an apparent rise in the area, according to Jacobs.

“We have recently experienced an influx of others committing similar offenses of this sort in our community,” Jacobs wrote in an email. “Merchants are advised to verify identity when selling goods or services to avoid someone else’s card being used without the owner’s consent.”

George was also ordered to pay $1,108 in fines and costs.

—Richard Jenkins