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Woman who stole dementia patient's identity also ripped off others, deputies say

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — The woman who deputies said stole $38,000 from a dementia patient also stole the identities of others, possibly including a 2-year-old.

Channel 9 reported on Feb. 1 that Volusia County deputies believe 42-year-old Karen Splain stole a woman's identity and went on a shopping spree, buying a laptop from Montgomery Ward, shopping at Walmart and Hotels.com, and even using Pay to send money to a jail inmate.

Deputies said when they arrested Splain, she had a bag containing driver's licenses, phones, Social Security cards and checks that didn't belong to her. One of the Social Security cards belonged to a 2-year-old boy, deputies said.

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Deputies said Splain also had a food stamps card in the name of a woman who spoke to Channel 9 but did not want her name to be revealed.

"It's an invasion of our privacy. How she got away with it, I don't know," the woman said. "It was very frustrating because I never got anything in the mail. It was very scary."

Previous coverage: Mysterious Amazon deliveries lead to discovery that dementia patient's identity was stolen, police say

The woman believes a former friend stole her information and may have passed it on to Splain two years ago.

Records show Splain has a history of similar crimes. She was arrested in 2017 and 2018 for unlawful possession of a personal ID. Channel 9 reported last year that Holly Hill police caught her going through mailboxes. Police said Splain had checks and journals with people's Social Security numbers, dates of birth and account numbers.

Previous coverage: Woman steals checks, personal info from mailboxes in Holly Hill, police say

Splain was released from jail in August after serving five months. She is now in the Volusia County jail on $95,000 bond.

>> Read more news from Volusia County 

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Jeff Deal

Jeff Deal, WFTV.com

I joined the Eyewitness News team as a reporter in 2006.