Three individuals were arrested in Santa Rosa County on Tuesday after a traffic stop led to the discovery of a multi-state fraud operation involving around $46,133 in fraudulent checks.
Deputies initiated the stop of a 2024 Nissan Altima for an unsafe lane change and identified the occupants as 27-year-old Gregory Lamar Vincent, who was wanted in Georgia for violating probation on a burglary charge, 18-year-old Neko Rajah Thomas, and 59-year-old Steven Ray Adams, who was found with fraudulent identification documents.
During the stop, Deputy Morris and his K-9, Raiko, conducted a free-air sniff of the vehicle, which led to the discovery of narcotics. Authorities found a glass smoking pipe with crack cocaine residue, a small electronic scale, and a mason jar lid with fentanyl residue.
Vincent claimed that he and Thomas were friends, while both identified Adams as their uncle. Their travel stories conflicted, with Vincent stating they were headed to Birmingham, and Thomas mentioning a beach vacation.
A further search uncovered seven envelopes containing fraudulent driver’s licenses and counterfeit credit cards. Additionally, deputies found $4,150 in Thomas’s jacket pocket, believed to have been withdrawn using a fake license earlier in the day.
The investigation revealed that the suspects were involved in a coordinated fraud operation using fake IDs and counterfeit documents to steal money from victims. The three suspects were arrested and booked into the Santa Rosa County Detention Facility, facing multiple felony charges, including identity theft and possession of counterfeit IDs and checks.