A federal grand jury has indicted six Upstate New Yorkers on charges of stealing US Treasury tax refund cheques and using forged identities to cash them at banking institutions across New York and Pennsylvania.
U.S. Attorney Michael DiGiacomo charged Jeffrey Fleischer, 36; Crystal Velez, 36; Blaine Webster, 40; Reginald Seals, 47; Johnny Ray Mcduffie, 36; and Anthony Zorilla, 28. All come from Buffalo.
Each defendant faces accusations of conspiracy to conduct bank fraud and aggravated identity theft, with a mandatory minimum sentence of two years and a maximum of 30 years.
Between August 2023 and May 2024, the defendants allegedly got stolen Treasury tax return checks made payable to others, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul E. Bonanno, who is managing the case. They then utilized bogus identification documents to open bank accounts in the check recipients’ names, deposited the stolen checks, and withdrew or transferred the monies for personal gain.
The fraud stole the identities of over 12 victims from New York, Florida, New Jersey, Virginia, Connecticut, and Oregon, resulting in an estimated loss of more than $1.3 million.
The scheme aimed at more than ten financial institutions, including Northwest Bank, Evans Bank, Good Neighbors Credit Union, ServU Credit Union, Sweet Home Federal Credit Union, Erie Federal Credit Union, Corning Credit Union, Greater Niagara Federal Credit Union, Cornerstone Community Federal Credit Union, and High Point Federal Credit Union. The accounts were established in branches in Buffalo, Amherst, Getzville, Niagara Falls, Painted Post, and Corning, New York, as well as Erie, Pennsylvania.
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