Ohio Man Sentenced For Credit Card Fraud Scheme

               BEAUMONT, Texas – A 29-year-old Columbus, Ohio man has been sentenced for his part in a credit card scheme in the Eastern District of Texas, announced U.S. Attorney John M. Bales today.

Mohamed Laye Dioubate, a naturalized citizen from Guinea, was sentenced to 33 months in prison today during a hearing before Judge Marcia Crone.  In December 2013, Dioubate was found guilty by a jury of possessing 15 or more unauthorized access devices in December. 

According to information presented in court, on June 27, 2012, Dioubate was stopped on Interstate-10 in Beaumont for a traffic violation.  A search of the vehicle revealed 158 fraudulent credit cards, a laptop computer and a credit card encoder.  The credit cards contained various names and account numbers and had been used in multiple fraudulent purchases throughout the country.  In November 2012, Dioubate was stopped on two separate occasions, once in Missouri and once in Indiana.  During each of those stops, he was again found in possession of multiple fraudulent credit cards.   Dioubate was indicted by a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of Texas and charged with federal violations in April 2013. 

Citizens can visit the Federal Trade Commission’s website to learn more on how to protect themselves from identity theft schemes:  http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/features/feature-0014-identity-theft.

            This case was investigated by the Beaumont Police Department, U.S. Secret Service, St. Charles County, Missouri, Sheriff’s Office, and the Henry County, Indiana, Sheriff’s Office.  This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher T. Tortorice and Brit Featherston.