EVERETT — A windstorm, the Internet and some super-sleuthing helped catch a convicted embezzler on the run from police in California.
Everett detectives on Thursday arrested Lina Hinds, 38, on suspicion of forgery and identity theft. Investigators believe the Mill Creek woman stole a check from a north Everett business where she worked as an accounting manager and attempted to use the forged check to buy a 2007 Chevy TrailBlazer.
California authorities said Hinds has a history of stealing from her employers, and is wanted for embezzling more than $500,000 from California businesses.
She was awaiting sentencing for an embezzlement conviction in Alameda County, Calif., when she reportedly stole $200,000 from a flooring company in San Mateo, said Steve Wagstaffe, chief deputy district attorney in San Mateo County.
She was out on bail in that case when she reportedly stole another $300,000 from a book distribution company in Berkley, Calif.
Then she disappeared.
“We had no idea where she was until we got the call from Washington state,” Wagstaffe said. “She’s very smooth. Somebody like Lina Hinds can talk her way out of trouble.”
Hinds used a fake name when she was hired in Everett. In just a few weeks, she stole personal information from one of the owners and created a fake California driver’s license, police said. She also stole a check from the business and wrote it out for $38,400 to buy a new vehicle, Everett police detective Molly Spellman said in a police affidavit filed Friday in Everett District Court.
An account auditor at the Everett business noticed the missing check before Hinds picked up the TrailBlazer.
“We had controls in place and we were able to flag it very quickly,” said Shaun Hughes. He and his wife own the north Everett business.
They did a little more digging and learned that Hinds was using a fake name. They figured out her real name by getting into her work computer, where she had logged on to an e-mail account using the name Lina Hinds. They searched her name on the Internet and learned she was wanted in California for embezzlement.
“The business owners did an amazing job of finding out who she was. If they hadn’t done that research, it’s possible it would have been a dead end for us,” said Spellman, lead detective in the Everett case.
Investigators scrambled to find out where Hinds was living. They were worried she’d run.
Employees at the Everett business found a phone number scribbled on a notepad that Hinds had used. Spellman called the number and learned that Hinds recently moved to Mill Creek.
Police watched the home on Thursday and saw that Hinds was inside.
Spellman used the strong windstorm as a ruse. She posed as a utility worker and told Hinds she needed to check a power meter because of the high winds. Hinds came to the door and was quickly arrested.
An Everett District Court judge on Friday set bail at $75,000. Hinds also is being held without bail for the charges she faces in California.
Hinds is a “high-end, prolific identity thief,” Everett police Sgt. Mark Thacker said.
Everett police seized bogus Social Security cards, credit cards and rental agreements from her home. They even found a fake criminal investigator badge for the U.S. Department of Treasury. In some cases, Hinds had made up names, and in others, it appears she stole someone else’s personal information. She had only been employed at the Everett business for about three weeks before the information was taken from the owner, Spellman said.
Detectives continue to comb through the evidence.
“We may very well find the $38,000 check is the tip of the iceberg,” Thacker said.
Hinds served time in prison for a 1999 embezzlement conviction in Los Angeles, Wagstaffe said.
It doesn’t appear that she’s using the stolen money to feed a drug habit or gambling addiction, he said. In this case, he alleges that she used part of the money on a down payment for her home.
“She likes the high life,” Wagstaffe said.
Hughes said they had checked references for the woman they thought they were hiring. Nothing showed up. He’s thankful his business has controls in place that alerted him and his wife to the stolen check.
“I think what makes it hard is when you hire a new employee it’s like bringing in a new family member,” he said. “At least we were able to stop her before she did this to someone else. Shows you the power of the Internet and the police.”
Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
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