$2 M ID THEFT SCHEME GETS THIEF 63 MONTHS IN PRISON – THAT’S $31,746 A MONTH.

July 13, 2006 -- Seattle -- Following a four-year investigation police identified an identity theft ring across several States. The scheme consisted of two parts: first, the suspects obtained genuine government identification cards using fraudulent documents such as a Social Security Card and number; then used the fictitious identities to defraud numerous financial institutions and merchants. The investigation identified that the scheme’s ringleader and his daughter provided false supporting documentation to several State licensing agencies, which issued identification documents to co-conspirators in aliases using other individuals’ SSNs. Agents recovered approximately 200 false supporting documents, including birth certificates, military discharge documentation, rental agreements and marriage licenses. Using the victims’ SSNs and false identification, these individuals were able to open bank accounts, write bad checks to merchants, and withdraw cash from victims’ banks. The estimated fraud loss from this scheme is $2,000,000 in bank fraud and merchant fraud.

Posted by Mark Otto