South Jersey Residents Accused Of Stealing $570K From Feds: USAO

Three South Jersey people have been arrested in connection with an extensive scheme involving fraudulently obtained refund checks issued by the U.S. Treasury, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced on Thursday. A fourth suspect remains at large.

Jorge Gutierrez, 39, of Merchantville; Alberto Sanchez, 34, of Camden; and Roque Bisono, 29, of Maple Shade, were all indicted by a grand jury for conspiring to defraud the United States, theft of government funds, and aggravated identity theft.

Sanchez was additionally indicted on witness tampering charges, and Bisono was indicted for making false statements to federal law enforcement officials in connection with the investigation. They appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joel Schneider in Camden federal court. Awilda Henriquez, 32, of Camden, remains at large. They are all accused of defrauding the U.S. Treasury out of $565,091.

Stolen Identity Refund Fraud (SIRF) is a common type of fraud committed against the United States government that involves the use of stolen identities to commit tax refund fraud, according to documents filed in the case and statements made in court.

SIRF schemes generally share a number of hallmarks. Perpetrators obtain the personal information of unwitting individuals, who often live in Puerto Rico, including Social Security Numbers and dates of birth.

They then complete Form 1040 tax returns using the fraudulently obtained information and falsifying wages earned, taxes withheld, and other data, always ensuring that the fraudulent tax return generates a refund.

They direct the U.S. Treasury Department to mail refund checks to locations that the perpetrators control or can access. With the fraudulently obtained refund checks in hand,

SIRF perpetrators cash the fraudulently obtained refund checks using bank accounts that they control or at check cashing businesses.

For the 2013 tax year, more than 3,300 SIRF tax returns were filed using the names and Social Security Numbers of residents of Puerto Rico. The refunds were directed to be mailed to a small section of Pennsauken, authorities said.

Of the 3,300 returns filed, several refund checks were issued and ultimately cashed at check cashing agencies in New Jersey, Philadelphia, and New York. They were cashed using false and fraudulent identifications, including fake New Jersey driver's licenses, fake Social Security cards, and fake Department of Homeland Security Permanent Resident Identification cards.

Gutierrez, Bisono, Sanchez, and their conspirators are accused of recruiting mailmen from the U.S. Postal Service to help them steal the tax refund checks from the mail. The mailmen were paid for every U.S. Treasury check they stole, authorities said.

The conspirators also paid “check couriers” to cash the tax refund checks in a variety of ways, including at check cashing businesses in and around Camden, authorities allege. The “check couriers” used fake IDs at the check cashing businesses matching the names on the tax refund checks in order to cash the checks.

The counts of conspiracy to steal government funds are punishable by up to five years in prison. The counts of theft of government funds are punishable by a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison. The count of false statements is punishable by imprisonment of up to five years.

The witness tampering count is punishable by up to 20 years in prison. The count of aggravated identity theft is punishable a statutory mandatory prison sentence of two years that must be served consecutively to any term of imprisonment imposed for the violation of any other count. All the counts are also punishable by a fine of up to $250,000, or twice the gain or loss caused by the offense.

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