Illinois Man Sentenced to Three Years in Prison for Role in $1.4 Million Bank Fraud Scheme

CAMDEN, N.J. – An Illinois man was sentenced today to 36 months in prison for his role in a bank fraud scheme resulting in $1.4 million in losses, Acting U.S. Attorney Rachael Honig announced.

Dwayne Modeliste, 41, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Noel L. Hillman in Camden federal court to an indictment charging him with conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Judge Hillman imposed the sentence today by videoconference.

According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:

From 2016 to 2018, Modeliste conspired with Larry McGee and Adam D. Arena to defraud Synchrony Bank. Modeliste and his conspirators used the personally identifiable information of others, most of whom were incarcerated, to obtain credit cards from Synchrony Bank. Modeliste and his conspirators submitted to Synchrony Bank merchant applications so those enrolled merchants could accept Synchrony credit cards as a form of payment. After the merchants were enrolled with Synchrony Bank, the conspirators used the fraudulently obtained credit cards to conduct transactions at the merchants. The proceeds from the fraudulent transactions were deposited into bank accounts controlled by Modeliste and his conspirators. 

In addition to the prison term, Judge Hillman sentenced Modeliste to three years of supervised release. He also ordered Modeliste to make restitution to Synchrony Bank in the amount of $1.43 million and ordered forfeiture in the amount of $133,330. 

Acting U.S. Attorney Honig credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge George M. Crouch Jr., with the investigation leading to today’s sentencing.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine R. Murphy of the

U.S. Attorney’s Office’s National Security Unit in Newark.