Utah travel company owner charged with fraud, accused of leaving for Australia

Josephine Ranae Bangerter, 35, has been charged in 4th District Court with nearly a dozen felonies over a Utah travel business, KSL.com reported. The charges include pattern of unlawful activity, communications fraud, unlawful use of a bank card, theft, issuing a bad check and forgery. The allegations are unproven. ^[1]

Prosecutors allege Bangerter ran Book Your Bucket List, LLC, which failed to book clients' trips or booked them to the wrong place, and then did not provide refunds. Charging documents describe one couple who were sent screenshots of flights that allegedly did not exist and who learned at the airport that their tickets were for a different destination. ^[1]

Some victims also allege unauthorized card charges. One card was charged more than $8,400 and another more than $30,000, according to the charges, and reimbursement checks bounced. A man whose card was charged more than $40,000 in travel purchases was refunded about $25,000. One woman who invested $12,000 in 2019 has not been repaid, the documents say. ^[1]

The charges say that in 2019, after American Fork police said they would refer the case to the Utah County Attorney's Office, Bangerter left the United States for Australia. Prosecutors say she is believed to have left to avoid prosecution, has not returned and cannot be served a summons there. As of September 2026, the U.S. Marshals Service had been advised of her location in Australia, the charges say. ^[1]