Houston Man Heads to Federal Prison for Defrauding Senior Citizens

HOUSTON – Raymond Goffney, 38, has been ordered to federal prison for his convictions of conspiring to commit wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, announced U.S. Attorney Kenneth Magidson. Goffney pleaded guilty Jan. 26, 2015.

Today, U.S. District Judge Lynn Hughes handed Goffney a sentence of 69 months in federal prison. He was ordered to serve 33 months for the conspiracy in addition to 24 months for the identity theft which must be served consecutively. He was further sentenced to an additional 12 months for violating the terms of his supervised release for a prior federal charge in 2006 involving the possession and distribution of cocaine. In total, Goffney will serve 69 months in federal prison to be immediately followed by five years of supervised release.

Between Jan. 1, 2013, and Nov. 30, 2013, Goffney engaged in a wire fraud conspiracy to unlawfully obtain cash and defraud Compass Bank, a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation - insured institution. Goffney and others unlawfully obtained, shared and busted out multiple cards for cash and shared the proceeds with each other. Goffney and his co-conspirators stole the identities of approximately 75 individuals, the vast majority of whom were senior citizens. These identities were then taken to apply for fraudulent credit cards with Compass Bank. Goffney used both legitimate and fake businesses, under his sole ownership and control, to run the fraudulent credit transactions.

Goffney and others stole a total of approximately $1.1 million during the conspiracy.

He was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.

The charges are the result of an investigation by U.S. Secret Service and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Assistant U.S. Attorney Julie Searle prosecuted the case.