5 face charges in connection with stolen checks

PALMER — A grand jury indicted five people this week as co-defendants in a scheme to forge checks, court records and authorities said.

Stacey Lynn Moore, 31, Tamar Chapson, 33, Daphne Eliason, 52, Brandie Klun, 35, and Kyle Leighton, 28, all of Wasilla, faced one charge each of second-degree forgery, according to an indictment filed last week.

In addition, Moore faces charges of scheme to defraud, theft in the first degree, theft in the second degree, and fraudulent use of an access device, court documents show.

Moore allegedly stole checks from her grandfather, and then used friends to cash them, said Alaska State Troopers Lt. Robert French.

“That’s why a lot of retailers in the Valley don’t accept checks anymore,” he said.