Fort Hall man accused of stealing over $30K charged with multiple felonies
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POCATELLO — A man who allegedly took more than $30,000 using a stolen ATM card faces multiple charges.
Christian Lee Silk, 27, has been charged with three counts apiece of felony grand theft and felony fraud by acquiring a stolen financial transaction card, court records show.
A man came to the Pocatello Police Department around 4:45 p.m. on May 1 to report the unauthorized use of his ATM card, according to an affidavit of probable cause. He told officers he believed Silk used the card to make numerous cash withdrawals.
The victim said he went out of town from April 4 until April 11, asking Silk, the family member of a close friend, to housesit while he was gone.
When he returned, the victim said he found some “suspicious transactions” had been made using his ATM card. He told police he never gave Silk authorization to his ATM card. Two of the suspicious transactions, the victim told police, were transfers totaling $8,400 into Silk’s bank account.
The victim told police he knew Silk to have been in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction, but believed him to have been sober for two years. He added that he believed Silk was addicted to gambling as well, the affidavit says.
The victim provided police with a list of transactions he had not authorized.
According to the affidavit, that list included 45 withdrawals totaling $25,700 — this was in addition to the $8,400 transferred into Silk’s account. The total amount taken, according to the affidavit, was $34,100.
Police reports do not detail an investigation or arrest. However, court records show Silk was charged with a misdemeanor for driving with an open alcohol container on Nov. 13 — the same day the theft and fraud charges were filed.
He was held at Bannock County Jail until he posted a $25,000 bond on Nov. 16.
Though Silk has been charged with these crimes, it does not necessarily mean he committed them. Everyone is presumed innocent until they are proven guilty.
If he is found guilty, Silk would face up to 57 years in prison.
He is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing before Magistrate Judge Carol Tippi Jarman on Nov. 27.