ROCKINGHAM — Two women are facing a variety of fraud-related charges related to the financial accounts of a man who has been deceased for more than a year.
According to an arrest warrant, 36-year-old Mary Elizabeth Collins, of Hamlet, obtained banking and savings account information March 12 from the estate of the late John T. Grant Sr. to “support financial struggles and gain financial benefits.”
According to his obituary, Grant passed away on Dec. 19, 2023 at the age of 98.
Collins was charged by the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office with one felony count each of obtaining property by false pretenses and identity theft, as well as a misdemeanor count of possession or manufacture of fraudulent identification.
A warrant for Collins’ arrest was issued July 3 and she was taken into custody July 22. She is being held in the Richmond County Jail on a $10,000 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in court Aug. 7.
A warrant obtained April 14 by the Hamlet Police Department alleges that 30-year-old Laura Gail Cox, of Rockingham, used a forged check for $35,853 — drawing money from Grant’s account — to buy a 2025 Toyota Camry from Griffin Toyota on April 9.
Cox was also arrested July 22 and charged with one felony count each of uttering a forged endorsement, forgery of an instrument, and obtaining property by false pretenses.
The RCSO has also charged Cox with obtaining property by false pretenses and identity theft, as well as a misdemeanor count of possession or manufacture of fraudulent identification.
Records show Cox was also served with an outstanding warrant dated May 14 from neighboring Montgomery County, where she is accused of giving the name and date of birth of another woman to a deputy with the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office after reportedly being caught with a plastic cup with white powder residue on May 13.
The MCSO has charged Cox with identity theft, resisting a public officer, possession of drug paraphernalia, and aiding and abetting driving while license revoked.
Cox is being held in the Richmond County Jail on a combined $20,000 secured bond. She is scheduled to appear in Richmond County District Court on Aug. 7 and Montgomery County District Court Aug. 18.
Records with the N.C. Department of Adult Correction show Collins was convicted Jan. 30 on a misdemeanor count of conspiracy to commit fraud and was given a 12-month suspended sentence.
Cox was convicted in 2020 on two counts of misdemeanor breaking and entering, possession of drug paraphernalia and failure to move to the far lane.
All defendants facing criminal charges are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
