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Press Release

Bernalillo County Man Sentenced to Prison for Federal Fraud, Identity Theft and Theft of Mail Conviction

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of New Mexico

ALBUQUERQUE – Jesse Tucker, 36, of Tijeras, N.M., was sentenced today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to 48 months in prison for his conviction on fraud, identity theft, and theft of mail charges.  Tucker will be on supervised release for two years after completing his prison sentence.  Tucker also was ordered to pay $42,600.42 in restitution to the victims of his crimes.

Tucker was charged in an indictment filed on Feb. 14, 2018, with eight counts of bank fraud, six counts of aggravated identity theft, and one count of theft or receipt of stolen mail.  The bank fraud counts alleged that between Nov. 2016 and May 2017, Tucker fraudulently obtained almost $70,000 through a scheme to defraud that involved the use of stolen personal identifiers, checks, and other financial instruments obtained from stolen mail.  The aggravated identity theft counts alleged that Tucker used the identities of others without lawful authority between Nov. 2016 and May 2017, and the theft or receipt of stolen mail count alleged that in June 2017, Tucker unlawfully possessed stolen mail, including checks and financial instruments, taken from a U.S. Postal depository in June 2017.  The indictment charged Tucker with committing these crimes in Bernalillo and Valencia Counties, N.M.

On June 20, 2018, Tucker pled guilty to the eight bank fraud charges, two of the aggravated identity theft charges, and the theft or receipt of stolen mail charge.  In entering the guilty plea, Tucker admitted that between Nov. 2016 and May 2017, he used the personal identifiers of nine individuals, which he obtained from stolen mail, to create and obtain counterfeit identification cards and drivers’ licenses that but bore his photograph.  Tucker then used the fraudulent identification cards and licenses to falsify checks, complete credit applications, and apply for loans from financial institutions.  Tucker also admitted using the personal identifiers of others in his efforts fraudulently to obtain loans while knowing that they belonged to real people.  Tucker also acknowledged that on June 6, 2017, law enforcement found a large volume of stolen mail belonging to other individuals in his residence. 

The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated this case and it was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrin.

Updated November 1, 2018

Topic
Identity Theft