Melinda Kay Johnson, a former employee of the Washington State Department of Licensing, was sentenced to two years in prison for the crime of conspiracy to commit unlawful production of identification documents.. She sold Washington State ID cards to various conspirators, who then engaged in a bank fraud scheme. Carders then used these IDs to open bank accounts and withdraw stolen money.
– «Money withdrawal is a big problem for fraudsters», – says Nikolay Fedotov, InfoWatch chief analyst. – «They have to overcome numerous obstacles created for them in the banking structure. In particular, when you open a bank account your need to prove your identity. Bank accounts in bogus names with debit cards are in great demand among carders, fishers and cybercrooks. But in order to open such an account, you have to bribe a bank employee or procure a fake identification card».
During 10 years of her work at the DOL office, Melinda Kay Johnson sold at least 9 fake documents for as much as $3,000 each. Bank of America lost over $200,000 from accounts opened using the fake documents supplied by JOHNSON. After the balances in the accounts were inflated with fraudulent deposits using forged checks, co-conspirators quickly used the debit cards to purchase hundreds of thousands of dollars of cigarettes at Sam’s Club stores in California. The cigarettes were then taken to a store in Hollywood, California, where they were sold for cash at a discounted price.
Other members of the bank fraud clique were also convicted at trial and are scheduled to be sentenced later.
