Christopher Andre Devine, a 34-year-old man from Salisbury, Maryland, was sentenced to 121 months in prison followed by five years of supervised release for conspiring to commit bank fraud and aggravated identity theft in connection with a scheme to use the personal identifying information of individuals to open bank accounts and fraudulently obtain cash, merchandise and services.
The scheme, which took place from December 2008 through December 22, 2011, involved Devine and his co-defendants, Quanishia Williamson-Ross, Lenee E. Williamson, and Quashonna Williamson, opening or recruiting others to open checking accounts at banks and obtaining check cards, which the conspirators then controlled. The conspirators deposited fraudulent checks into the accounts and used the associated check cards at ATM machines to make cash withdrawals from the accounts.
According to evidence presented to the court, the women in the group, Williamson-Ross and the Williamsons, gave all of the proceeds from the scheme to Devine, who provided them with little more than food and shelter. The women lived with Devine and were completely financially dependent on him. Devine used a minor to further the scheme and led the group of conspirators with violence and intimidation, including punching and throwing a conspirator across a room.
Devine also obtained the identifying information of at least 40 individuals who were clients and 60 individuals who were current or former employees of a residential program for adults with mental health needs, which he purchased from an individual who was employed at the Program. Devine used the personal identifying information of these victims to open checking accounts via the telephone and Internet that he then controlled for use in the scheme.
Devine and his co-conspirators had fraudulent identification documents made using the personal information of others but with photographs of Devine, Williamson-Ross, and Lenee Williamson, which they used, along with the check cards, to make purchases at retail stores, later returning the purchased items for cash. The conspirators also used the check cards to obtain services, such as utilities, cable, and cellular phone service, and to make purchases for their personal benefit at restaurants, drug stores, grocery stores, gas stations, and video rentals, and other businesses.
The U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland, Rod J. Rosenstein, praised the work of the law enforcement agencies involved in the case, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, the Wicomico County Sheriff’s Office, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, and the Social Security Administration – Office of Inspector General.
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Key Facts
- State: Maryland
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes|White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release ↗
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