Ex-hospital clerk pleads guilty to identity fraud, forgery

PROVO — A hospital employee who took credit card numbers from patients has pleaded guilty to fraud and unlawful possession of ATM cards.

Aaron Poplawski, 25, an accounts-receivable clerk at Central Utah Medical Clinic, was charged Aug. 17 with nine third-degree felony counts, including attempted forgery, identity fraud and attempted unlawful acquisition or possession of an ATM card. He also was charged with one class B misdemeanor of theft by deception.

Poplawski entered a guilty plea in 4th District Court to reduced charges — with all the third-degree felonies being reduced to class A misdemeanors. He will be sentenced Oct. 16 at 9 a.m.

Poplawski was responsible for setting up payment plans for patients, said Scott Barlow, chief executive officer of the clinic.

Administrators began looking into Poplawski's record after a patient contacted the hospital with concerns about an account. Provo police were called soon after they started the internal investigation.

Although Poplawski never had physical possession of the cards, Barlow said, he would write down the numbers and use them to make later purchases.

Police caught Poplawski after he tried to pose as someone else and use their credit card number to get nearly $200 worth of work done on his car, according to a police report filed in 4th District Court.

After an investigation by the clinic, Barlow said they found 16 different account numbers had been taken, but only six patients reported any kind of activity on their account.

"As far as we're concerned, it was fairly nominal in scope," Barlow said of the small-amount purchases.

The credit card companies have taken care of the fraudulent charges for the patients, Barlow said.