Frontiersman

PALMER — Palmer police have arrested a Wasilla man in Eagle River who is suspected of helping pass forged checks in the Valley and Anchorage.

Ryan Burkhart, 25, was arrested Nov. 1 on a warrant for robbery, theft and assault for an Aug. 2, 2007,  incident in which Alaska State Troopers say he forcefully stole an ATV from a 13-year-old near Wasilla-Fishhook Road and Mariah Drive. Police have been looking for Burkhart and his girlfriend, Angie Minnick, 30, since September. Crime Stoppers organizations in Anchorage and the Valley have offered up rewards.

Police Detective Sgt. Kelly Turney said he’s had numerous near misses with Minnick.

“I’ve talked to her a couple of times. She was supposed to turn herself in and just has not done so,” Turney said Monday.

He said she also has a warrant for her arrest for not showing up for a probation hearing. Minnick is on probation for a 2006 conviction for writing checks with real account numbers but fake routing numbers around the Valley, a case that netted her a year of incarceration.

Turney said he thinks she and Burkhart have started a similar scheme, this time writing a large check for disposable credit cards and gift cards at local merchants, than living off the cards.

“It’s easier to write one check for $400 and then have $400 to spend,” Turney said.

He said on Nov. 1 he got a tip that Burkhart was in the Eagle River area. He and two other Palmer officers went down there and, after a day’s worth of work, arrested Burkhart at Wal-Mart.

Turney said he’s been working with the local merchants to get the word out about what kind of fraud to look for. He said clerks should be suspicious of anyone writing a $400 check for four disposable credit cards.

The relationships he’s made help further down the road when it comes time to charge somebody with the thefts, Turney said. Store security are extremely helpful in gathering up surveillance tapes, receipts and other evidence.

Turney is no stranger to this type of fraud and, he said, it’s surprisingly common in the Valley.

“I can look at a check now and tell you who wrote it out of the people involved,” Turney said.

Burkhart was jailed on $10,000 bail and will need to find a third party to watch over him before he can be released.

Anyone with information as to Minnick’s whereabouts is asked to call Palmer Police at 745-4811, Mat-Su Crime Stoppers at 745-7333, or Anchorage Crime Stoppers at 561-7867. Both Crime Stoppers organizations are offering up to $1,000 reward for information leading to her arrest.

Contact Andrew Wellner at andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com or 352-2270.