Defendants Sentenced for Roles in Access Device Fraud and Identity Theft

COVINGTON, Ky. - Shirley Ann Cameron, 53, of Chicago, Illinois, and Danielle Vaccara Davis, 42, of Geronimo, Oklahoma, were sentenced today, on their guilty pleas to charges of Aggravated Identity Theft and Conspiracy to Commit Access Device Fraud.  United States District Court Judge David L. Bunning sentenced Cameron to 36 months in federal prison, while Davis received a total of 30 months.

In their plea agreements, the defendants admitted law enforcement arrested them in Kenton County, Kentucky, after they attempted to use counterfeit credit cards at a liquor store.  The pair had numerous counterfeit credit cards in their possession.  The investigation revealed that the defendants were part of a conspiracy that was responsible for more than 800 fraudulent return/refund transactions at Cracker Barrel Restaurants, throughout the country.  Cameron and Davis conducted approximately 43 purchases at Cracker Barrels in Eastern Kentucky—including Lexington, Florence, Dry Ridge, Mount Sterling, Morehead, and Georgetown—and elsewhere. The loss associated with the fraud scheme topped $160,000. 

In committing the scheme, the defendants used counterfeit credit cards to make purchases with stolen account numbers. The defendants would retain the receipt, which displayed only the last four digits of the stolen account number, and would then return the purchased items to a different Cracker Barrel, using the receipt. They would present personal debit cards containing those same four digits, for a return of funds.                   

Under federal law, the defendants must serve 85 percent of their prison sentences; and upon their release, they will be under the supervision of the United States Probation Office for a specified term. Cameron and Davis were ordered to pay restitution to Cracker Barrel Restaurants.    

Robert M. Duncan, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Kentucky, and Yvonne DiCristoforo, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service made the announcement.

The investigation was conducted by the United States Secret Service. The United States was represented by Assistant United States Attorneys Laura K. Voorhees and Wade T. Napier.

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