Patrick Hayes and Jesse Martinez report: Seven people were arrested, including employees at the county clerk’s office, in connection with an identity-theft scheme, authorities said. An arrest warrant was executed in Anthony, New Mexico, Friday that resulted in the arrest of four people at a residence. Evidence found in those arrests resulted in three county…
Category: ID Theft
Former St. Louis IRS worker filed 356 fraudulent tax returns
Robert Patrick reports: A former employee of an IRS office in St. Louis pleaded guilty to federal charges Monday and admitted filing more than 356 false tax returns, prosecutors said. Demetria Michele Brown, 38, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Jefferson City to two counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity…
NJ: Hackers Steal $240K From Mahwah Businessman’s Bank Account
Sean Adams reports: In Mahwah, hackers set their sights on a local businessman and obtained enough of his personal information to convince his bank to wire $240,000 overseas. Police Chief James Batelli said they even hijacked the man’s phone number, so when the bank called to verify “That is call forwarded to Brussels and the person…
FL: Former Employee of the U.S. Postal Service and Co-Defendant Sentenced for Identity Theft Tax Refund Fraud Scheme
Two individuals, including a former employee of the U.S. Postal Service, have been sentenced for their participation in an identity theft tax refund fraud scheme. Shawn Hawes, 34, of Miami, was sentenced to 62 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Kelly Urseles Roberts, 39, of Miami, was sentenced on May 19, 2015 to…
Credit Unions, Trades Sue Home Depot
Peter Strozniak reports: A consolidated class action lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Atlanta, Ga. Wednesday listed 37 credit unions, 16 state leagues, CUNA and 11 banks that claimed the 2014 Home Depot data breach caused billions of dollars in fraud losses and more than $150 million in card reissuance costs. Read more on Credit Union…
MS Sheriff’s Office Employee Used Stolen IDs to File Fraudulent Tax Returns
United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that a federal grand jury indicted a Mississippi woman for being part of a scheme to file fraudulent income tax returns using stolen identities and causing the refunds to be mailed to post office boxes in Louisiana. Shannon A. Brumfield, 48, of Byram, Miss., was indicted on…