From The Tribune staff reports
TRUSSVILLE — The Trussville Police Department is asking for the public’s help with locating a Trussville man who fled authorities following a narcotics search warrant at a residence on Cooks Moore Road in mid May.
The TPD is actively searching for Fred Collins Jr., 22. Collins is wanted on multiple charges including trafficking in stolen identities and encoded data fraud.
The incident began when Collins fled authorities following a narcotics search warrant on May 15, 2020, on Cooks Moore Road, in Trussville. Investigators had observed suspicious activity outside the target house while executing the search warrant. During the execution of the warrant, Collins ignored verbal commands and proceeded to flee the scene on foot. Collins did manage to escape, but he dropped a bag in the process, which authorities found.
The bag contained a credit card encoding device with blank cards containing magnetic strips, a notebook with identifying information and a laptop. The TPD obtained a search warrant for the electronic devices found in the bag and discovered evidence that suggests that Collins was utilizing the dark web to purchase stolen identities.
The TPD discovered over one million identities, which include email addresses/passwords, credit card numbers and social security numbers, on the laptop.
Collins is still on the run and the TPD requests that anyone with information related to this case, or the location of Collins, is asked to submit a crime tip via email at crimetip@trussville.org. If you wish to remain anonymous, you can contact crime stoppers at 205-254-7777.
“We kindly request that you turn yourself in at the Trussville Police Department,” the TPD posted in a statement. “Investigators wish to speak with you about the contents of your bag and the beginners guide to credit card fraud manual that was found within your property.”