Two Cuban Nationals Indicted for Possession Stolen Account Numbers and Identity Theft
A federal grand jury in East St. Louis, IL, returned an indictment charging Eriberto Ricardo Gomez, 41, and Yasmanis L. Oduardo Fonseco, 26, with possession of fifteen or more stolen account numbers and aggravated identity theft, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, James L. Porter, announced today. Gomez and Gonseco, who are both originally from the country of Cuba, are currently residing in Houston, Texas.
The stolen account numbers were discovered by an officer of the Caseyville, Illinois, Police Department on October 8, 2015, during a traffic stop on I-70 in Madison County. At that time, Gomez and Gonseco had in their possession 19 prepaid credit cards. The magnetic strips of these prepaid credit cards had been re-encoded with account numbers registered to customers of a financial institution in the state of Pennsylvania,
The charge of possession of 15 or more stolen account numbers is punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release. The aggravated identity theft charge carries a mandatory sentence of two years in prison, which must be served consecutively with any prison sentence imposed for the stolen account number charge.
The investigation is being conducted by the Fairview Heights, Illinois, Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”). The Caseyville and Pontoon Beach Police Departments are assisting in the investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Scott A. Verseman.
An indictment is a formal charge against a defendant. Under the law, that charge is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
