Fort Lee officers chase down suspect after bank fraud

YOU READ IT HERE FIRST: An ex-con from the Bronx was chased down by two Fort Lee police officers after he tried to open a bank account with a fake identity, authorities told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.
Officer John Bakas put the cuffs on Thomas Woodvens, 32, after his feet got tangled and he fell around the corner from the Wells Fargo branch on Lemoine Avenue just before 11 a.m. yesterday, Capt. Stanley Zon told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.

Photo Credit: *Cliffview Pilot File Photo*

Jerry DeMarco

07/18/2014 7:05 p.m.

Woodvens was being chased by Detective William Cullen, who was first on the scene, the captain said.

Zon said Woodvens tried using a bogus New York driver’s license and Visa signature card with false names to open an account, but bank employees quickly determined they weren’t legitimate and called police.

He was charged with credit card theft, resisting/eluding, forgery, wrongful impersonation, fraudulent use of a credit card and having forged documents.

A white BMW believed possibly tied to him was also seized.

The Haitian-born Woodven remained held on $5,000 bail in the Bergen County Jail this afternoon, with a detainer from the INS.

The Fort Lee General Investigations Division Fraud Unit is continuing an investigation.

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