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Identity Theft Arrests: Cayuga
County Man Wrote Bad Checks, Opened Charge Accounts Using Stolen Identities
Attorney General Spitzer and New York State Police Superintendent James McMahon today announced that an
Auburn resident has pleaded guilty in Onondaga County Court to charges relating to the theft and misuse of identification information of at least three people.
"Identity theft is one of the fastest-growing financial crimes in the nation," said Spitzer. "It is a crime that has far-reaching consequences for individual victims and businesses. My office is working with the State Police and other law enforcement agencies to combat and deter identity theft in all its forms."
Superintendent McMahon said: "Today’s ever increasing access to information and computer technologies has brought not only better service to consumers but has also opened the door for those unscrupulous individuals who use these resources for criminal enterprise. This incident and the subsequent investigation and arrest illustrate the need for consumers to be vigilant in protecting their personal information. The New York State Police is committed in its resolve to be at the forefront of investigating, identifying and preventing this increasing phenomenon of identity theft."
Robert Reeves, 36, of
West Genesee St.,
Auburn, pleaded guilty in Onondaga County Court before the Hon. William Walsh to two counts of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree, a Class E Felony. These charges arise from a scheme carried out between January 1995 and March 2000 in which Reeves obtained the social security numbers of three individuals, one of whom was his own six-year-old child. Reeves used this stolen information to secure jobs, buy and register vehicles and open credit card and bank accounts.
As part of the identity theft scheme, Reeves opened a charge account in 1995 under one of the false names at a jewelry store in
Johnson City,
Broome
County, and ran up more than $1,200 in purchases for which he never paid. He also wrote more than $23,000 in bad checks over a four-day period in late 1996 on a bank account that he opened under another of the false names.
By using the stolen identities, Reeves defrauded, among others, merchants, auto dealerships and the state Department of Motor Vehicles. Under a plea agreement, when Reeves is sentenced on May 30 he will receive 1 1/3 - 4 years in prison and be ordered to make restitution for the bad checks that he wrote and the merchandise that he purchased from the jewelry store.
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