Robert E. Kessler reports: Will the real “JonnyHell” please stand up? Federal prosecutors said Friday that Aleksandr Suvorov, 26, of Estonia, used that Internet name in some of his illegal hacking escapades, as he was arraigned on fraud charges in U.S. District Court in Central Islip. Suvorov was accused of being one of the three…
Category: ID Theft
WA: Tobacco shop owner sentenced in debit card scam
A former Redmond tobacco shop owner was sentenced to 33 months in prison Friday for skimming information from hundreds of customers’ credit and debit cards, then siphoning money, federal officials said. U.S. District Judge Ricardo Martinez also sentenced Redmond resident Hrant “Mike” Aslanyan, 38, to five years of supervised release. He ordered him to pay…
Four defendants sentenced for $15 million tax fraud conspiracy
From the USDOJ press release: KANSAS CITY, Mo. – John F. Wood, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced today that four more defendants have been sentenced in federal court for their roles in a multi-million dollar conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service. The wire fraud scheme involved stealing the identities…
The missing “how” in media reports
The Associated Press reports that Tasheika Brown pleaded guilty in New Orleans to conspiracy to use stolen credit card numbers to buy cellular telephone equipment and airtime. The story does not indicate how she got the stolen credit card numbers. Unfortunately, we seem to be seeing an increasing number of media reports that refer to…
ACLU questions massive ID theft case in Greeley
Howard Pankratz reports: A probe of one of the biggest identity theft cases in Colorado history will be undertaken by two grand juries although the ACLU of Colorado says it is “highly likely” it will challenge the legality of the investigation. The grand jury probe stems from the seizure last October of 4,900 tax files…
OR: Salem credit union accounts compromised
David Krough reports: Customers at a Salem-based credit union are being warned of a possible security breach. Salem Police said they’ve had more than ten reports since January 12th of Oregon Territory Federal Credit Union debit accounts being compromised. Investigators said they didn’t know if debit cards had been stolen or the suspects just obtained…