BOSTON, Oct. 18, 2016—A New Hampshire man faces arraignment tomorrow on charges he stole more than $350,000 from a series of romantic partners and others, Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley and Boston Police Commissioner William B. Evans said.

A Suffolk County grand jury on Sept. 28 returned a 45-count indictment charging MICHAEL J. SHIELDS Jr. (D.O.B. 4/20/91), formerly of the Seaport and Theater District, with:

• 21 counts of credit card fraud,
• 17 counts of use of a stolen or fraudulently obtained credit card,
• Two counts of larceny over $250 by single scheme,
• Two counts of attempting to commit larceny over $250,
• One count of larceny over $250, and
• Two counts of intimidation of a witness.

He will be arraigned in the Magistrate Session of Suffolk Superior Court tomorrow morning.

Evidence collected during the course of an investigation by Boston police and Suffolk prosecutors suggests that Shields defrauded his victims through several different schemes between May 2015 and January 2016.

He is charged with opening more than a dozen credit cards in the names of five different women and using the cards to make charges of more than $375,000 on purchases including meals, vacations, clothing, and jewelry.

Authorities said Shields typically met victims through social media sites and became involved in brief romantic relationships.  A short time into each relationship, Shields allegedly asked the victim for her personal identification information, often stating that he wanted to make the victim an authorized user on his credit cards in order to take care of her financially.  Instead of adding the victim to his own credit card accounts, however, prosecutors say Shields used the victim’s personal information to open credit cards and added himself as an authorized user.

Shields allegedly opened four credit cards in the name of a childhood friend and ringing up charges totaling more than $3,000.  At the time, the victim was an active duty member of the U.S. Army preparing to transition into civilian life and had accepted Shields’ offer to help build his credit.

Shields is also accused of taking part in other schemes to make fraudulent use of some victims’ bank accounts to make payments on the fraudulently-obtained credit cards and to steal $12,500 from another member of the U.S. Army who had expected Shields to invest the funds on his behalf, prosecutors said.

The investigation was conducted by Boston Police Department’s Special Investigations Unit and prosecutors and investigators assigned to Conley’s Special Prosecutions Unit.

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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.