Philip Rankin is charged with theft and credit/debit card abuse. According to court documents, Rankin visited a neighbor at her east Harris County residence on January 31 and refused to leave. The 94-year-old female victim says she called her son, who later arrived and told Rankin to leave the premises.
The elderly woman then noticed her purse containing $300 cash was missing from under her bed mattress where she hid it. She told investigators she saw Rankin at one point crouched down near her bed.
A few days later, the woman says she noticed fraudulent charges on one of her credit cards, including room charges at the Interstate Motor Lodge on the East Freeway.
A clerk at the motel identified Rankin out of a photo array and showed investigators a copy of the driver's license Rankin provided to rent the room.
Rankin, 52, has a long criminal record dating back to 1978.
