Police: two Santa Rosa residents arrested on suspicion of identity theft

A Santa Rosa woman described by authorities as a “prolific” identity theft suspect has been arrested in an investigation that began last month.

Melissa Gutierrez, 40, was arrested around 10:15 a.m. Wednesday on suspicion of committing numerous offenses, according to the Santa Rosa Police Department.

These offenses include, but are not limited to, conspiracy, forgery, possession of a forged check, possession of blank checks to defraud, vehicle theft, and identity theft with more than 10 victims , the police said.

A second suspect, Santa Rosa resident Marc Boyce, 50, was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of conspiracy, forgery and identity theft.

No charges had been filed against either suspect as of Wednesday evening.

An investigation began May 20 when police received a report of a rented U-Haul that had not been returned to an office in the 1000 block of Hopper Avenue, police said.

Investigators concluded the vehicle was rented with a fake ID and contained information belonging to an identity theft victim.

Officers stopped the vehicle around 5:30 p.m. on May 21 at Guerneville Road and Cleveland Avenue.

Police said its driver was not involved in the theft, but did not say how that person ended up with the vehicle.

Investigators used surveillance footage from unspecified locations to identify Gutierrez as a suspect.

Police say they searched her home in the 2000 block of Pioneer Way and arrested her and Boyce.

Inside, they found “extensive evidence” of check fraud, forgery and identity theft with personal information on more than 100 victims, police said.

Officials added that evidence, including receipts and documents, showed the suspects used a victim's information to commit check fraud five hours before their arrest.

Police say Gutierrez has several fraud and theft cases pending in Sonoma County Superior Court in Santa Rosa. That includes a November arrest involving check fraud and information belonging to more than 20 victims, police said.

“Gutierrez was still in possession of several of these same victims’ (information) when he was arrested on June 5, 2024,” police wrote in a statement Wednesday. “Despite being released on bail for this offence, she continued to use the identities of these same victims for the purposes of further fraud.”

You can contact editor Colin Atagi at [email protected]. On Twitter @colin_atagi