Man Sentenced To 54 Months For Wire Fraud And Aggravated Identity Theft

Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Thomas J. Kelley, Special Agent in Charge, Washington, D.C. Field Office, IRS-Criminal Investigation, made the announcement after Demus’ sentencing before United States District Judge Raymond A. Jackson.

Demus and a co-conspirator, Travis Hager, were indicted on March 19, 2014 by a federal grand jury.  Demus was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, six counts of wire fraud, nineteen counts of aggravated identity theft, six counts of false claims, and two counts of theft of public property.  Demus pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft on September 3, 2014.

According to court records, Demus, along with Travis Hager, stole the identities of individuals and used them to file false tax returns.  Hager was incarcerated in Virginia Beach.  While there, he stole the identities of a number of fellow inmates and provided them to Demus.  Demus then used these identities to file fraudulent tax returns in their names and have IRS issue refunds directly to him.

Hager pleaded guilty on June 4, 2014.  He was sentenced on October 2, 2014 to 54 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $144,841.00.

This case was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph Kosky prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.  Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 2:14-cr-43.