Houston Man Sentenced for Conspiring to Steal
from Home Equity Lines of Credit of
Unsuspecting Victims
| U.S. Attorney’s Office January 29, 2015 |
HOUSTON—
Obinna Gregory Okoro,
25, of Houston, has been ordered to prison after conspiring to use personal identifiers of victims to create fake bank accounts online, link those accounts to existing bank accounts and drain them of the funds, announced United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Okoro pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit bank fraud, one count of engaging in computer fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft Sept. 3, 2014.
Today, U.S. District Judge Nancy Atlas, who had accepted the plea ordered Okoro to serve 33 months for the conspiracy and computer fraud charges and a consecutive 24 months for the aggravated identity theft to be served consecutively for a total 57- month-term of imprisonment. He will also be required to serve three years of supervised release following completion of that prison term. Judge Atlas also ordered restitution in the amount of $455,686.39.
According to his plea agreement, in September 2013, Okoro and his co-conspirators stole $537,681 from PNC Bank N.A. Okoro and others created a fraudulent account at PNC Bank using the a victim’s personal identifiers, which they linked to the victim’s home equity line of credit (HELOC) account. They also posed as the victim to call PNC Bank in order to learn more about the accounts, order checks and increase the daily withdrawal limit. They accessed these accounts online to fraudulently transfer a total of $537,681 from the victim’s HELOC account to the account they created. From there, they withdrew and transferred much of this money.
Okoro’s plea agreement also indicates that in April 2014, Okoro and his co-conspirators stole money from a bank account jointly held by two victims. Okoro and co-conspirators used the victims’ personal identifiers to fraudulently open a bank account online at Commerce Bank N.A., which was linked to a legitimate account owned by the victims.
Posing as one of the victims, they called Commerce Bank. When the bank asked for personal identifiers to authenticate their identity, Okoro and his co-conspirators were able to provide the victims’ name, date of birth, Social Security number, direct deposit account number and mother’s maiden name. They then transferred money from the victims’ legitimate account to the fraudulent account that they created and withdrew this money. Altogether, Okoro and his co-conspirators fraudulently transferred about $25,027 from the victims’ account to the fraudulent Commerce Bank account they created. From there, Okoro and his co-conspirators withdrew (or spent in debit card transactions) approximately $21,463.04.
Okoro has admitted he used some of the monies to buy an $85,000 BMW 650i. A Rolex watch appraised to have a fair market value of $47,800, a bracelet and a medallion were also seized at time of his arrest.
Okoro is and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The charges are the result of an investigation by the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Chu prosecuted the case.
Legal Disclaimer
Please be advised that:
The information and notices contained in this blog are intended to summarize recent developments and news. The posts are presented as general research and information. These posts are not intended, nor should be regarded, as legal advice. Some blog posts concern allegations made in civil lawsuits and in criminal indictments in United States Courts. All persons are presumed innocent until convicted of a crime and proven guilty. Readers who have particular questions or who believe that they need legal counsel should seek the advice of a qualified attorney. It is neither the editor's or author's intention to create a confidential relationship or any broker-client relationship via communication from this site at any time. Please consult with your state real estate board if questions & answers in the education section conflict with the laws of your region or if you need clarification regarding their applicability or how they may govern the services that you provide.
By entering this web site, you understand the following:
When you select a link to an outside Web site, you are subject to the privacy, copyright, security, and information quality policies of that Web site. David Saks:
1.DOES NOT control or guarantee the accuracy, legality, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of information contained on a linked Web site;
2.DOES NOT endorse linked Web sites, the views they express, or the products/services they offer unless linked web sites, the views they express, or the products/services they offer endorse or support David Saks in accordance with the standards of the Tennessee Real Estate Commission and the Federal Government's laws regarding commerce and the application, solicitation and transmission of internet-related concerns, commerce or social networking;
3.CANNOT authorize the use of copyrighted materials contained in linked Web sites;
4.IS NOT responsible for transmissions users receive from linked Web sites;
5. That DavidSaks.Com is biographical & real estate related. Some links within will leave this site.
6. http://activerain.com/profile/davidsaks is internet-compliant & abides by the rules & regulations of the Tennessee Real Estate Commission, Eve Maxwell, Executive Director.
7. Unless indicated otherwise, ActiveRain does offer listings, or IDX and is provided for licensed salespersons, brokers, buyers & sellers of real property as a community & professional service.
8. David Saks is a retired / licensed real estate broker in the State of Tennessee, license #290452, and an independent contractor.
9. Information is believed to be accurate, but not guaranteed, at any realty link or document connected to the World Wide Web & viewable by anyone connected to the internet who has a web browser.
10. Brokers, buyers, sellers, agents & anyone should independently verify any information prior to submitting any offer to purchase goods & services from any link.
11. Please Visit The American Real Estate Alliance or Memphis.8k.Com for additional information regarding property issues for real estate professionals and consumers.
© All Rights Reserved.
Department of Justice Legal Policies
Click "HERE" For Today's Question
The
Saturday Nite
9pm-12am Central
University of Memphis
WUMR
Support
America's Hobby
Mr.Saks' participation in ActiveRain ended April 13, 2015.
His blog archives will remain online.
May God bless you.
