Butler County Woman Sentenced to 4+ Years in Prison for Stealing Walmart Customers’ Identities

PITTSBURGH - A resident of Butler County, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 57 months incarceration and three years supervised release on her conviction of conspiracy, and aggravated identity theft, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

Senior United States District Judge Joy Flowers Conti imposed the sentence on Jennifer MacVittie, 32.

In connection with the information presented to the court, beginning around October 2013, through May, 2014, Jennifer MacVittie and Robert MacVittie used cell phone cameras to “shoulder surf” social security numbers from Walmart customers nationwide by taking cell phone video images of the customers who were cashing checks at the customer service counters. The stolen information was later used to negotiate counterfeit checks at Walmart stores throughout the U.S., including Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Florida, Texas, Mississippi, Alabama, Kansas and other states. The MacVittie’s were arrested at a casino by law enforcement in Nevada on Nov. 29, 2014.

Assistant United States Attorney Gregory C. Melucci prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

The Western Pennsylvania Financial Crimes Task Force conducted the investigation that led to the indictment of the Jennifer MacVittie. The WPFCTF was established as a collaborative, multi-agency effort to effectively combat financial crimes, including identity fraud, in Western Pennsylvania. Partnering in this effort are the United States Attorney's Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania, the United States Secret Service, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Department of Homeland Security, the Allegheny County District Attorney's Office, the Allegheny County Police Department, the City of Pittsburgh Bureau of Police and the Pennsylvania State Police.