A western Missouri woman facing numerous charges for trying to use another woman's identity to purchase thousands of dollars in merchandise at Sam's Club was sentenced to three years in prison.
Rebecca Machamer, 35, of Belton, pleaded guilty to one count of identity theft, three counts of forgery, two counts of receiving stolen property and one count of failure to appear. Her sentence will run concurrent with a federal prison sentence.
Machamer on Aug. 2 used the name Tiffany Wilson to open a Sam's membership, according to the Jefferson City Police Department. The next day, she used a stolen check from Leawood, Kansas, to purchase nearly $6,000 in goods from Sam's Club under the same name. A few days later, she attempted to return the merchandise for cash. Employees confronted her, and she was arrested.
Machamer told police she was Wilson and gave police Wilson's date of birth and a Social Security number. She eventually bonded out of the Cole County Jail and again used Wilson's name. She was given a court date but did not appear.
The real Tiffany Wilson was arrested Sept. 26 in the Kansas City area and claimed she was innocent of any charges.
After comparing fingerprints and photographs, it was discovered Wilson's identity had been stolen earlier this year, and Machamer had been using it as an alias for criminal activity.
While incarcerated in Cole County, Machamer made phone calls on a jail phone, which was recorded. On the recordings, Machamer said, "You got to get me before fingerprints catch up." She also said in another phone call, "They do a pre-trial investigation (where relatives are contacted to verify addresses), and that's going to get me hung up."