The man who stole dozens of Jackson County residents’ identities after breaking into their cars is suspected of committing more crimes against some of the same victims — this time from prison.

At least six victims of Eric One Ziegler’s January crime spree have suffered new instances of identity theft because Ziegler had access to their personal information while incarcerated, investigators said. In addition to victims’ names and birth dates, Ziegler, 31, gleaned Social Security numbers from police reports provided by his defense attorney, detectives said.

"Victims are just distraught," said Medford police Detective Bill Ford.

Telephone services were set up at the homes of Ziegler’s friends and relatives using victims’ personal information. Ziegler placed collect calls to the accounts from Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution in Pendleton, investigators said. He also gave other prisoners access to the telephone numbers, said Detective Colin Fagan of the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office.

"He’s able to trade it as a commodity," Fagan said, adding that inmates may swap meals, cigarettes or other favors with Ziegler to make a free phone call.

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Investigators with the Oregon Department of Corrections uncovered the scam during a routine audit of prisoner phone calls in June, Fagan said. In five weeks, 436 calls from 12 inmates in six separate correctional institutions were placed to the fraudulent accounts, resulting in a loss of approximately $8,000, Fagan said. Qwest contacted the account holders, who all suffered car break-ins at Ziegler’s hands late last year or early this year, Fagan added.

Police on Wednesday arrested two Medford women suspected of helping Ziegler set up fraudulent telephone services at their homes. Cara Kay Kelley, 41, of the 500 block of Arbor Street, and Ziegler’s niece, 24-year-old Carrie Ann Foley, of the 800 block of Pine Street, were lodged in the Jackson County Jail on charges of identity theft.

Prosecutors are considering new charges against Ziegler, who is serving a prison sentence of six years and two months. He pleaded guilty in Jackson County Circuit Court in April to a dozen felony charges including burglary, aggravated theft and identity theft.

Investigators said Ziegler was responsible for at least 60 car break-ins throughout the county. Fueled by a methamphetamine addiction, Ziegler used stolen checks, credit cards and identification to steal more than $100,000, which he was ordered to repay.

Ziegler legally received police reports of his crimes, which corrections officers have since found in his prison cell, Fagan said. State law only requires defense attorneys to omit victims’ addresses and phone numbers from those reports.

Local defense attorneys try to delete victims’ personal information from defendants’ copies of police reports, said Lisa Greif of Southern Oregon Public Defender. However, the process is labor intensive and isn’t always thorough, she said.

Faced with an increase of identity theft cases, Oregon prosecutors are pushing for a change in state law, said Jackson County District Attorney Mark Huddleston.

"That information shouldn’t be out at all," Huddleston said. "And it certainly shouldn’t be out with the defendant."

Legislators in 2003 failed to pass a bill that would withhold victims’ Social Security numbers and financial information from criminal defendants, Huddleston said. In an effort to keep the issue alive, Huddleston said he relayed the Ziegler case this week to the Oregon District Attorney’s Association.

Victims of Ziegler’s car-clouts who think they may have suffered a new identity theft are asked to contact Medford Police Criminal Investigations Section at 744-2230 or the sheriff’s office at 774-6800.

Reach reporter Sarah Lemon at 776-4487, or e-mail slemon@mailtribune.com