Con man arrested in South Carolina for charges in Allen County

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - Police in South Carolina have arrested a man who's wanted in Allen County, Indiana.  For a year, he has avoided being brought back here to face charges.

Police have been looking for 63-year-old Douglas Martin.  He also goes by the name Dean Martin.

According to court documents, on Christmas Eve in 2010 he opened a checking account at First Federal Savings Bank in Fort Wayne.  He deposited several fraudulent checks and withdrew money from the bank based on those.  Unfortunately though the checks came back saying there were insufficient funds.

Court documents show the woman who set Martin up with the checking account brought the fraudulent checks to the prosecutor.  On January 31, 2011, charges were filed against him.  He faces one count of fraud on a financial institution a class C felony and four counts of theft class D felonies.

According to the Allen County Prosecutor's office, police found him in South Carolina.  He convinced officers he was deathly ill.  The Prosecutor's office and law enforcement decided they didn't want to take on Martin's medical bills.  But they later learned he was never sick to begin with.  That's why the Prosecutor has issued a warrant out for his arrest now.

NewsChannel 15 has learned Martin's criminal history goes back further.  Not only has he allegedly conned a bank here in Fort Wayne but also two apartment complexes and a woman between 2007 and 2009.  Martin has already served time for those federal crimes.

According to court documents, he owed close to $2,000 in back rent to one apartment complex and gave out a false social security number to another.
   

He also convinced a woman he met online in Fort Wayne that he was a multi discipline doctor, veteran, and a graduate of the University of London.  She went on to wire him hundreds of dollars.