Member Of "Traveling Group" Of Fraudsters Pleads Guilty

BOISE — Myron Pardon, 26, from Southfield, Michigan, pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court to aggravated identity theft and credit card fraud, U.S. Attorney Wendy J. Olson announced. The defendant appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge Candy W. Dale at the federal courthouse in Boise.

According to the plea agreement, Myron Pardon, co-defendant Brandt Stewart and others, were part of a “traveling group” from Detroit, Michigan, that traveled to southern Idaho in December, 2013, and February, 2014, to make purchases at large “box stores” using counterfeit credit cards. Pardon knowingly and with intent to defraud used counterfeit credit cards to purchase “general use” charge cards at ten stores in Twin Falls, Boise and Meridian causing losses in the amount of $4,340.15. Some of the credit cards fraudulently used by Pardon belonged to actual account holders, thus constituting aggravated identity theft.

Pardon, Stewart and Lane were indicted by a federal grand jury on April 9, 2014. Co-defendants Brandt Stewart and Matthew Lane are set for trial on February 2, 2015. Pardon’s sentencing is set for February 2, 2015, before Chief U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill at the federal courthouse in Pocatello.

The charge of fraudulent use of a credit card carries a penalty of not more than 10 years in prison, a maximum fine of $250,000, and three years of supervised release. The charge of aggravated identity theft carries a penalty of not more than 10 years in prison with a mandatory minimum penalty of not less than two years in prison consecutive to the penalty imposed for other counts.

“Vigorous prosecution of those who travel here to carry out schemes to defraud Idaho citizens and businesses is a priority of this United States Attorney’s Office,” said Olson. “My office will work effectively and aggressively with local police departments and federal law enforcement agencies to put a quick end to these schemes.”

The case is the result of a joint investigation result of the Boise Police Department, United States Secret Service, and U. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).