Dashaun Brown, Bank Fraud, New Jersey 2022

NEWARK, N.J. – Dashaun Brown, 28, of Newark, has been convicted for his central role in a brazen scheme to steal credit cards directly from the U.S. Mail and then systematically drain accounts through fraudulent purchases. The operation, which involved at least one corrupt U.S. Postal Service employee, attempted to rack up over $1 million in losses before being busted by federal investigators.

The week-long trial before U.S. District Judge Kevin McNulty revealed how Brown, along with Jahad Salter, 29, and Hakir Brown, 28, allegedly bribed USPS employees – including Khadijah Banks-Oneal, 31 – to pilfer credit cards as they moved through the mail system. Once in their possession, the stolen cards weren’t simply used for quick cash. Brown and his crew allegedly posed as the legitimate cardholders, cold-calling banks to activate the cards and alter account information, effectively hijacking the identities of unsuspecting victims.

According to court documents and statements presented during the trial, the scheme allowed the conspirators to make hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of purchases at retail stores across New Jersey and beyond. Brown was convicted on four counts: conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, receipt and possession of stolen mail, and aggravated identity theft in connection with bank fraud. He was acquitted on one count of bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.

This wasn’t a solo operation. Salter, Hakir Brown, and Banks-Oneal have already pleaded guilty to their roles and are awaiting sentencing. Salter, who also faces a charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm, is scheduled to be sentenced on August 30, 2022. Hakir Brown’s sentencing is set for July 7, 2022, and Banks-Oneal will be sentenced on August 10, 2022, for accepting bribes as a federal employee. The case highlights the vulnerability of the mail system to insider threats and the lengths criminals will go to exploit them.

The penalties facing Brown are substantial. Conspiracy to commit bank fraud and bank fraud each carry a statutory maximum sentence of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. Receipt and possession of stolen mail is punishable by up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The aggravated identity theft charge carries a mandatory two-year sentence that will run consecutively with any other prison time imposed. Brown is scheduled to be sentenced on September 6, 2022.

The U.S. Attorney for the United States, Vikas Khanna, credited the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, the U.S. Marshals Service, the U.S. Secret Service, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, Homeland Security Investigations, the Livingston Police Department, and the Newark Police Department for their collaborative investigation. The Secret Service’s New York Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Patrick J. Freaney, played a key role in untangling the financial aspects of the scheme.

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