Conspirator In Bank Fraud Scheme Sentenced To Over Two Years In Prison

Greenbelt, Maryland - U.S. District Judge Roger W. Titus sentenced Antonio Holmes, age 29, of Washington, DC, today to 30 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release, for conspiring to commit bank fraud and for aggravated identity theft. Judge Titus also ordered Holmes to pay restitution of $363,738.71.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Kathy A. Michalko of the United States Secret Service - Washington Field Office; and Postal Inspector in Charge Gary R. Barksdale of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service - Washington Division.

According to his plea agreement, from January 2010 to May 2012, Holmes conspired with Lateef Akande and others to defraud financial institutions. As part of the scheme, Lateef Akande recruited Holmes and other individuals to provide personal bank information regarding existing bank accounts in their names, or to open new accounts in their own names. Akande and others then caused third-party checks to be deposited into those bank accounts. For any of the checks that cleared, the co-conspirators would withdraw monies from those accounts.

For example, on January 28, 2010, Holmes deposited a fraudulent check drawn on the account of a victim, and made payable to Holmes in the amount of $34,450.90. On January 30, 2010, Holmes cashed a check for $3,900, drawn on the same victim’s account and made payable to Holmes.

Holmes admits that as a result of his participation in the fraud scheme the loss or intended loss is at least $400,000.

Lateef Akande, age 37, of Bladensburg, Maryland, was sentenced on July 14, 2014, to 175 months in prison for conspiring to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, aggravated identity theft and money laundering. Judge Titus also ordered Akande to pay restitution of $418,042.58.

Today’s announcement is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force (FFETF) which was created in November 2009 to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Since the inception of FFETF in November 2009, the Justice Department has filed more than 12,841 financial fraud cases against nearly 18,737 defendants including nearly 3,500 mortgage fraud defendants. For more information on the task force, visit www.stopfraud.gov.

United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the Secret Service and U.S. Postal Inspection Service for their work in the investigation. Mr. Rosenstein thanked Assistant United States Attorneys David I. Salem and Thomas P. Windom, who prosecuted the case.