News

June 25, 2008

Exeter man charged in theft of checkbook from house

Police say that William W. Altemose, 19, stole $3,600 from account.

JEN MARCKINI jmarckini@timesleader.com

WEST PITTSTON – A 19-year-old man was arraigned Monday after, police say, he broke into a Liberty Street house from which he removed a checkbook and wrote thousands of dollars worth of checks.

William W. Altemose, of 478 McKinley St., Exeter, was arraigned Monday on charges of burglary, criminal trespass, theft and receiving stolen property, according to West Pittston police.

Altemose is accused of breaking into 425 Liberty St. on June 2, according to the criminal complaint, and stealing a Wyoming Area Federal Credit Union checkbook belonging to Jason White and his mother, Theresa White.

Three separate payments of $600 had been made out to Altemose for “car payments,” police said. Two checks, worth $900 each – one to purchase two pit bulls – were written.

Police said $3,600 was taken from the account.

According to the affidavit of probable cause:

Altemose told police Jason White approached him in early June about his red Ford. He said the two agreed on a price of $2,000.

He then told police he wrote three checks, for $600 each, for car payments to Altemose on June 2, June 5 and June 10, according to carbon copies of checks that were still attached to the checkbook.

Altemose told police that when he met White the third time, White said to him, “I wouldn’t be able to pay you for a few weeks,” and then White gave Altemose his checkbook in “good faith.”

On June 16, Theresa White told the police the checks were left behind at the Liberty Street house she still owned.

Altemose was arraigned Monday before District Judge Michael Dotzel, Wilkes-Barre Township, and released on recognizance bail. A preliminary hearing has been scheduled July 2 at Central Court.

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