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‘Love & Hip Hop Atlanta’ Shocker: Karen King Arrested On Identity Fraud, Forgery Charges

By Shaunee Flowers
Published on: 16:27 PST, May 24, 2016

Karen King’s criminal past was already exposed early in Season 5 of Love & Hip Hop Atlanta. After a Monday night arrest in Atlanta, it looks like Karen, who also goes by KK, hasn’t quite put her criminal career in the past.

TMZ reported that Karen King was arrested on Monday night when she arrived at a Love & Hip Hop Atlanta promotional event at Level V. KK’s appearance at the club had been part of the event promotion, and Fulton County police were aware that she would be in attendance, so they were there to greet and arrest the LHHATL newbie when she got to the club.

The arrest stemmed from an incident back in August 2015 when Karen King allegedly walked into an Atlanta Saks Fifth Avenue and walked out with just under $5k in merchandise. KK has been charged with financial identity fraud, theft by taking, and first-degree forgery according to records from the Fulton County Jail. It was reported that Scrapp and Sas’ mom used someone else’s identity and credit card number to illegally purchase $4,946.52 worth of goods.

Straight From The A was first to report on Karen King’s arrest on Monday night. As they wrote the report, they said the Love & Hip Hop Atlanta star was being held in the back of a police car outside the Level V club in Atlanta and was suspected to be under arrest for identity theft. The reason for her arrest was confirmed by TMZ the following day.

According to the New York Daily News, there are two more suspects in the case and both of them work at Saks Fifth Avenue. Karen King brought her purchases to a sales associate named Armani Harper, who later admitted to police that she knew she was charging someone else’s credit card. Harper also admitted that she received “kickbacks” for allowing the Love & Hip Hop star to buy merchandise from the high-end retailer using an identity that did not belong to her.

If Karen King is convicted of the identity theft and fraud charges against her, she may not be around to welcome her son, Scrapp DeLeon, when he gets out of prison himself. The most serious forgery charge carries a one-year minimum and a 15-year maximum if King is convicted. All three charges together could result in a maximum of 30 years in prison. Since this isn’t the Love & Hip Hop star’s first run-in with the law, there’s a pretty good chance that she won’t be sentenced to any minimums.

Prior to her debut on Season 5 of Love & Hip Hop Atlanta, Karen King’s criminal past was exposed. The most shocking allegation against KK was the kidnapping and attempted murder of her ex-husband Lyndon Baines Smith. Although the charges were dropped, Karen was accused of enlisting her children and one of their friends to beat up, abduct, and kill Sas’ father. What is even more shocking is that her sons went through with it and probably would have killed the man, but the father was found in the trunk of a car during a traffic stop.

“I was accused of murder for hire, meaning hiring my children to kill their father,” KK stated in a VH1 interview. “Just to let you know, he’s in the club just like y’all every night. He’s definitely not dead.” That’s right, Lyndon Baines Smith is not dead but he was kidnapped, beaten, and nearly killed. The attempted murder scheme landed Scrapp and Sas in jail while their mother KK was featured on the America’s Most Wanted list. KK argued that she was innocent and that Scrapp and Sas beat her ex-husband in retaliation because he had beaten up their half-brother, according to Fashion & Style.

Aside from the murder-for-hire accusations, Karen King has also been arrested on various other occasions for identity theft and forgery. When news broke of Scrapp DeLeon’s girlfriend Tommie’s lengthy record, Starcasm reported that many of her arrests for identity theft and other related crimes happened while she was acting as a part of Karen King’s forgery ring. King’s ex-husband accused her of identity theft and of using fake credit profiles to buy houses and cars. Baines Smith said in an interview that her “forte is fraud.”

What do you think of the forgery and identity theft charges against Karen King? The Love & Hip Hop star certainly has made a huge impression in Season 5. Do you think she’ll be around for Season 6, or will she be serving time like her son Scrapp DeLeon?

[Image via Instagram]

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