Kevin Cimeus, Identity Theft, Conspiracy to Steal Government Property, Florida 2014

MIAMI, FL – In a shocking case of identity theft, tax fraud, and social security schemes, 21-year-old Kevin Cimeus of Miami has been sentenced to 156 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release.

According to records filed in the case, federal agents found over 2,400 social security numbers and names of real people stored on thumb drives, laptop computers, iPad, and Cimeus’ email account at Cimeus’ residence.

The evidence at the trial showed that Cimeus recruited Miami Dade College (MDC) students to allow the defendant to use their Higher One Bank accounts to receive fraudulently obtained tax refunds and that Cimeus used his own Higher One Bank and Chase accounts to receive fraudulently obtained tax refunds.

Cimeus filed at least one thousand tax returns from two IP addresses. He also used the two IP addresses to access the Social Security Administration’s web site and create online profiles for social security recipients in order to re-route the victims’ social security payments to other accounts.

U.S. Attorney Wifredo A. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of the FBI, IRS-CI, and the SSA. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Gera R. Peoples and Cynthia Wood.

Cimeus was convicted after a four-day jury trial in Fort Lauderdale on June 20, 2014, of ten counts, including conspiracy to steal government property or money, theft of government money or property, access device theft, and aggravated identity theft.

The sentencing was carried out before Judge William J. Zloch.

The case is a stark reminder of the dangers of identity theft and the importance of protecting personal information.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.

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