BOZEMAN -- Two men from out of state appeared in Gallatin County Justice Court Thursday morning for multiple felony charges after they were arrested Wednesday, July 20, 2022, when a Bozeman bank reported a man they believed to have illegally withdrawn thousands of dollars in a fraudulent scheme.
Jonathan T. Dugan, 37, of Amityville, NY, and Johnny D. Lorenzo, 31, of Orlando FL, were arrested by law enforcement after a Bozeman bank reported they believed a man had committed a theft. The bank told Bozeman Police officers the man in question had been at two different Billings branches of First Security Bank earlier the same day and had reportedly withdrawn $7,000 in cash from customer’s accounts.
Officers stopped Dugan, who had reportedly used the name “Kenneth Williams” in Billings and “Kristopher Jense” when attempting to withdraw money from the Bozeman branch of First Security Bank.
Employees at the bank stated to officers the alleged scheme was used to receive money - the man would come in with a fake ID of an actual client, an actual business associated with that client from the fake ID, the client’s social security number, and their phone number. The suspect did not possess the account number but had all of the prerequisites the bank required for someone to withdraw money, as they appeared to be a legitimate customer. The bank, believing this to be one of their customers would access the actual customer’s account and the suspect was able to withdraw funds.
According to charging documents, Dugan was found to have a full extradition warrant from Colorado for forgery and similar offenses. Dugan told officers that a different man, driving a rental vehicle, was waiting to pick him up after he committed the thefts. Dugan reportedly told officers that the man, later identified as Lorenzo, had purchased plane tickets from New York City, La Guardi, to Bozeman for him and his wife. The pair were living on the street when the man approached them and offered to help him make money if he would go to Montana with him.
The three individuals arrived in Bozeman, then traveled to Billings, and reportedly went to two different banks in Billings, withdrawing $7,000 from accounts. Dugan told officers he attempted to do the same at the Bozeman bank but had left when the employees tried delaying him while they contacted law enforcement.
Detectives located the rental vehicle and Lorenzo on 19th Ave in Bozeman. A search of the vehicle found multiple IDs, documents with various names, and $900 in crisp $100 bills. A fanny pack reportedly belonging to Lorezo contained $6,000 was also recovered.
Lorenzo was arrested and cited for conspiracy to commit theft, conspiracy to commit forgery, and conspiracy to commit identity theft, all felonies.
Dugan was arrested on his outstanding warrant and cited for theft, forgery, and identity theft, all felonies.
Both Dugan and Lorenzo's next court appearance was set for Aug. 5, 2022. Bail was set for $20,000 for both men.
