Canyon County Man Sentenced For Aggravated Identity Theft And Possessing Several False ID Documents

BOISE – Jordan Schoo, 34, of both Nampa and Grangeville, Idaho, was sentenced today in United States District Court to 39 months in prison for identity theft by possession of five or more false identification documents and aggravated identity theft, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill also ordered Schoo to pay $8,703 in restitution, and serve three years of supervised release following his prison term. During the supervised release, Schoo will have substantially limited access to computers and the internet. He was charged in an 11-count indictment filed in federal court in Boise on August 14, 2013.

According to the plea agreement, Schoo admitted that on March 20, 2013, he knowingly possessed nine false and fraudulent Idaho driver’s licenses, each with his own photograph but with the identifying information of actual people, such as names, dates of birth, and driver’s license numbers. Schoo possessed a tenth false identification with a different person’s photograph. According to the plea agreement, Schoo used, and intended to use, the documents to purchase goods on credit from various businesses participating in interstate commerce, such as Best Buy.

Schoo obtained the means of identification of people he impersonated from a number of sources, including that of a former roommate from Colorado. Schoo also used the means of identification taken from his mother’s business. He used the various false identities that he possessed to purchase goods from both local and on-line retailers, including a 60” television and a car audio and security system. Schoo also obtained credit cards in the names of various victims. As part of the scheme, he opened and maintained a mailbox under a false name at a commercial mailbox store.

United States Attorney Wendy Olson stated that, “Today’s sentence sends a firm message that those who victimize others by stealing their identities and causing them financial loss will be punished swiftly and severely,” said Olson. “The United States Attorney’s Office is committed to protecting the financial security of the citizens of Idaho and will pursue identity theft offenders and hold them accountable for the extensive damage that they cause to victims. I commend the cooperative law enforcement efforts that brought this case to a successful conclusion.”

The case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and Grangeville Police Department.