Phoenix, AZ: A federal grand jury has handed down an indictment against six persons, saying that they participated in a scheme to defraud individuals and banks across the United States, including in the state of Arizona. The indictment contains five counts.
According to a press release issued by the United States Attorney’s Office in Arizona, the defendants, Armani R. Purandah, Age 24, Rashawn L. Gray, Age 27, Tyshaun D. Ripley, Age 25, Awilda Reyes, Age 51, Richard M. Bah, Age 20, of Bronx, New York, and Harley D. Stuscavage, Age 41, of Phoenix, were each charged with one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and four counts of aggravated identity theft.
According to the indictment, they devised a scheme to commit fraud against persons and financial institutions located all throughout the United States, particularly in the states of Arizona, Colorado, and California.
“The co-conspirators unlawfully used the personal identifying information of the victims as well as fraudulent identifications in order to open fake business accounts that were linked to the victims’ legitimate bank accounts,” the release read.
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“They moved the victims’ money from the victims’ legitimate bank accounts to the fraudulent business bank accounts,” the statement reads. Following the transfer of the victims’ funds to the business accounts, the co-conspirators subsequently withdrew the funds in cash from the financial institutions and tribal casinos.
According to the authorities, they also carried out other transactions that were not allowed using the accounts.
If you are found guilty of conspiring to conduct bank fraud, you could face a maximum sentence of thirty years in jail and a fine of up to one million dollars. A mandatory minimum jail sentence of two years is prescribed for the offense of aggravated identity theft.