70-Month Sentence For Reston Man In Bank Fraud, ID Theft Scheme

RESTON, VA — A Reston man convicted of bank fraud and aggravated identity theft as part of a scheme to generate thousands of dollars in fraudulent COVID-19 stimulus checks was sentenced to 70 months in prison, according to a U.S. Department of Justice release.

From about December 2019 to August 2020, Jonathan Drew, 39, of Reston stole mail from more than 150 residents of Fairfax and Loudoun counties, according to court documents. In addition to bank statements, credit cards, and credit card statements, the stolen mail included W-2 forms and and more than $700,000 in checks. The money included COVID-19 stimulus payments, as well as counterfeit checks Drew had created.

Part of Drew's scheme was to use the stolen stimulus checks to create counterfeit stimulus checks in the amounts of $1,200 to $2,400, according to court documents. He also used personal information stolen from several people to lease an apartment, open bank accounts, and conduct other fraudulent transactions.

“The defendant’s extensive fraud scheme involved the unlawful acquisition of personal identification information belonging to over 150 individuals,” said Raj Parekh, acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, in the release. “In addition to causing financial harm to the individuals from whom he stole checks and credit cards, the defendant’s sweeping criminal conduct also inflicted emotional harm and distress to his identity theft victims. As this case demonstrates, we are determined to hold accountable those who seek to illegally enrich themselves by defrauding and stealing from our residents.”