Alexander Kosmin, Receiving Stolen Property, California 2013

A Bay Area man has been convicted of knowingly receiving stolen property, specifically high-end cellular telephones, that had traveled in interstate commerce.

According to the U.S. Attorney's office in San Francisco, Alexander Kosmin, 23, formerly of San Jose, California, was found guilty of one count of Receiving Stolen Property that had Traveled in Interstate Commerce after a five-day jury trial before U.S. District Court Judge Charles R. Breyer.

The evidence presented during the trial revealed that Kosmin had knowingly received stolen cellular telephones, including iPhones, that had been fraudulently ordered on AT&T and Verizon online customer accounts. The customer accounts were unlawfully accessed online, with orders placed in the names of other persons and shipped to locations that did not correspond with the addresses of the true customers on the accounts.

Kosmin, who used numerous false names and presented false identity documents in those names, arranged to have the stolen cellular telephones sent to various hotels in the Bay Area from San Francisco to Santa Cruz. The jury found that the value of the stolen cellular telephones was $5,000 or more.

After receiving the stolen cellular phones, Kosmin sent the phones to a co-conspirator in Russia or sold them using Craigslist. He then wired half of the proceeds back to his co-conspirator in Russia.

The investigation into Kosmin's activities began after AT&T contacted the National Cyber Forensic Training Alliance (NCFTA) regarding fraudulent orders on customer accounts. The NCFTA referred the matter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Kosmin was indicted by a federal grand jury on June 26, 2012, and charged with one count of Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud and one count of Receiving Stolen Property that had Traveled in Interstate Commerce. He was acquitted of the Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud count in the indictment.

Kosmin was remanded into the custody of the United States Marshal following his conviction. The sentencing hearing in this matter is scheduled for July 10, 2013, before Judge Breyer in San Francisco. The maximum statutory penalty for Receiving Stolen Property that had Traveled in Interstate Commerce in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2315 is 10 years, a fine of $250,000, 3 years supervised release, and restitution.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndca/pr/jury-convicts-bay-area-man-knowingly-receiving-stolen-property