Lanham, MD – Junaidu Saljan Savage, a/k/a James Kamara, 30, is headed to federal prison for nearly seven years after being convicted of a sophisticated bank fraud scheme. U.S. District Judge George L. Russell III sentenced Savage to 87 months behind bars, followed by five years of supervised release, on October 14, 2016. He was also ordered to pay $36,400 in restitution to the defrauded bank.
The scheme, exposed during a six-day trial, ran from January 1, 2012, through April 2012. Savage teamed up with Jayad Zainab Ester Conteh, a bank teller who abused her position to provide account holders’ personal information. Conteh, 24, of Glenarden, Maryland, illegally accessed the bank’s system and handed over sensitive data to Savage and his crew. Savage then impersonated account holders over the phone, manipulated account details, and ordered new checks delivered to addresses where they could be intercepted.
Evidence presented at trial showed the conspiracy impacted at least seven bank accounts, with intended losses exceeding $120,000. Paul Anthony Williams, a/k/a Anthony Johnson, 53, of Washington, D.C., was caught attempting to cash a stolen check stemming from the operation and pleaded guilty, receiving a 39-month prison sentence. Savage and his co-conspirators then cashed the checks at various bank branches across Maryland.
What’s particularly damning is Savage’s attempt to cover his tracks *after* Conteh began serving her own 64-month sentence. In July 2014, Savage visited Conteh’s relatives, admitting his involvement and promising to cover the $36,400 restitution. His girlfriend followed through, delivering $6,000 in cash to Conteh’s family as a partial payment, a desperate attempt to mitigate the damage and avoid further scrutiny.
Conteh, convicted of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, and unauthorized computer access, was also ordered to pay $36,400 in restitution and forfeit the same amount. The case was a joint effort by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the U.S. Secret Service – Washington Field Office, and the Montgomery County Police Department.
This bust is part of the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, a massive coalition of over 20 federal agencies and 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices dedicated to aggressively investigating and prosecuting financial crimes. The Task Force aims to coordinate law enforcement efforts and tackle fraud on a national scale, signaling a continued crackdown on financial wrongdoing.
Related Federal Cases
- Junaidu Saljan Savage, Bank Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft, La… · Maryland
- Terry Bowman Sentenced to 66 Months for Bank Fraud, Bank Fraud, and… · Maryland
- Markis J. Dickerson, Bank Fraud Conspiracy, VA 2024 · North Carolina
- FDIC, Bank Rule Loosening, Washington DC, 2023 · Maryland
- William Frazier Sentenced to 51 Months for Wire Fraud, Midland GA, … · Georgia
Key Facts
- Agency: U.S. Secret Service
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Press Release
Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free
Browse More
