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Police say former dry cleaner may have fraudulently used credit cards
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Published: February 6, 2009
Police say they're searching for a former Mooresville dry cleaner who is suspected of fraudulently making charges on customers' credit cards.
Detective Kevin Cowan of the Mooresville Police Department said Thursday that Charlotte's Ana Maria Calderon-Melendez operated a franchise of the Dry Cleaning Station at 109-F Williamson Road until May 2008, when she put up a sign that said that the business was relocating.
But the new location, said Cowan, listed as 807 Williamson Road, proved to be a "fraudulent address." In addition, said Cowan, the dry cleaner's customers were unable to get in contact with Melendez to retrieve their clothing.
"Whatever clothing was in the possession of the dry cleaner at the time of the closing was taken with (Calderon-Melendez)," said Cowan. "She basically abandoned the place."
Several months later, said Cowan, Calderon-Melendez's customers "started realizing that their credit cards were being charged for (services at) the Dry Cleaning Station."
One woman, said Cowan, disputed the charge with her bank, and the bank investigated. When it reported back to her, it claimed it had a ticket from a legitimate business.
"Whoever is doing this is making up tickets for a business that doesn't exist anymore," said Cowan.
Cowan said that when he began investigating Calderon-Melendez, he discovered she was in debt.
"She owed everybody money," he said.
The MPD, he said, has also discovered that charges have been filed against Calderon-Melendez in Florida, although the department is not yet sure what charges are pending because officials have not yet received reports regarding the allegations.
Calderon-Melendez, said Cowan, has left no forwarding address with the post office or with the tenants who now live in the house that she used to rent in Charlotte.
Cowan said he has also contacted John Campbell, the owner of the Dry Cleaning Station franchise in Minneapolis, Minn., but Campbell has no knowledge of where Calderon-Melendez is and claims no liability.
Cowan said the nature of a franchising operation means that Campbell is likely correct. Franchisers, he said, "just collect a check. They don't really have any control over how an individual business is run. So basically, she's MIA (missing in action)," he said.
If Calderon-Melendez has moved out of state, Cowan said, that could create jurisdictional problems.
Cowan said the department is continuing to pursue the case, particularly with the victim's banks and their fraud departments. So far, he said, when asked where the money is being transferred to when a victim's card is charged, the banks say the money is being sent to a business in Huntersville or Mooresville. Both of those businesses, said Cowan, are fraudulent.
There should be a money trail somewhere, said Cowan, "but so far, they don't know where the money is going."
Only three victims, said Cowan, have so far registered complaints about Calderon-Melendez, but he is certain there are more out there. It's also possible that there's someone out there who knows where she has gone, said Cowan. That information, he said, could be crucial to breaking the case.
"Everything as far as an investigation hinges on where the (suspect) is," he said.
If you have information regarding the location of Ana Maria Calderon-Melendez, call Crimestoppers at 704-658-9056. If you have found fraudulent charges from the Dry Cleaning Station on your credit card, contact Det. Cowan at 704-664-3311.
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