Jonesboro, AR – JonesboroRightNow.com – A Jonesboro woman is behind bars after police said she took part in a scheme that fraudulently negotiated over $4,000 in stolen checks.

District Judge Tommy Fowler found probable cause June 17 to charge 44-year-old Minnie Nicole Rulford with five counts of second-degree forgery (Class C felony) and theft of $1,000 or less – all others (Class A misdemeanor).

According to the probable cause affidavit, on May 5, Jonesboro police officers responded to the Best Western Hotel on Gilmore Drive to investigate stolen and fraudulently negotiated checks belonging to the victim. One check in the amount of $700, dated April 23, was made payable to “Cutting Up LLC” for “investment”.

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Further investigation revealed that the listed business address for Cutting Up LLC, an address on East Center Street, is a residential trailer park. Records showed that Rulford was associated with the address, and her photograph was found on a website associated with the business.

Through investigation, police obtained Rulford’s contact information from her employer, Best Western, where management advised that she had been suspected in prior incidents. She had not returned to work after the investigation began, however.

Based on the evidence presented during the investigation, a warrant was issued, and Rulford was arrested.

During a Mirandized interview, Rulford admitted that she would write out stolen checks to individuals for them to cash, and then she would receive $150 from each check after it was cashed. Rulford admitted to giving multiple checks to a co-defendant in the case. The five checks found in the investigation totaled over $4,000.

Fowler also found probable cause Wednesday to charge Rulford in a drug-related case.

A separate affidavit states that on June 16, Patrolman Melvin Isom attempted to find Rulford at a home in the 400 block of North Church Street.

Upon Isom’s arrival, he saw Rulford standing on the back porch and placed her into custody. He searched Rulford’s purse, at which time she said, “There’s a bowl and some drugs in there.” The affidavit notes that a “bowl” is common street jargon for a pipe used to ingest meth.

A probation search of Rulford and her purse yielded two plastic bags with meth inside weighing 0.93 grams total. A rolled marijuana cigar weighing 0.57 grams and a used glass pipe with white residue were also found.

Rulford faces the following additional offenses for this case:

• Possession of meth or cocaine less than two grams (Class D felony)
• Possession of drug paraphernalia (Class D felony)
• Possession of a Schedule VI substance less than four ounces (Class A misdemeanor)

Rulford is being held on a $35,000 cash/surety bond for both cases. She is scheduled to be back in court on July 30.

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