Arizona Woman Arrested at St. Thomas Airport After Allegedly Scamming Rental Car Company

Emoni Goldman admitted to police that she did not pay for the rental because she didn’t have the money, leading to charges of false pretense and credit card fraud after attempting to leave St. Thomas without settling the bill

ST. THOMAS — A woman was arrested and charged after allegedly renting a vehicle for use on her vacation and subsequently trying to flee the territory without paying.‌ Last week, the Economic Crime Unit began investigating a complaint that a woman had scammed a car rental company into giving her a vehicle for which she never paid.‌

The manager of the company told police that Emoni Goldman came into the business on August 21, accompanied by three men. She chose a 2021 Ford Bronco for $125 per day plus a $250 security deposit and filled out the paperwork, providing her Arizona driver’s license as part of the process.‌

When it came time to pay, one of the men reportedly provided a credit card number read off his phone. After several unsuccessful attempts to enter the details manually, the rental company tried using Magic Pay for the transaction, but that also proved futile.‌ At that point, with Ms. Goldman and her companions pleading the need for a vehicle, the manager says he allowed the group to leave with the vehicle, on condition that she return the next morning to settle the bill. She reportedly never showed.‌