Orlando, Florida - U.S. District Judge Charlene Honeywell yesterday sentenced Walter Brown (42, Kissimmee) to 2 years and 1 day in prison and 25 hours of community service for aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to produce fraudulently-obtained driver licenses. Brown pleaded guilty on Dec. 13, 2013.
According to court documents, Brown was a Customer Service Representative in the Office of the Osceola County Tax Collector. Brown’s primary duty was to issue driver licenses and identification cards. Court documents show that, in his capacity, he issued more than 250 Florida Driver Licenses and identification cards to individuals who may not have been legally entitled to the documents. In some instances, Brown issued fraudulent driver licenses and identification cards in multiple identities, to the same person. For each fraudulently-issued piece of identification, Brown made an estimated $300 - $700.
The Osceola County Tax Collector’s Office reported Brown to law enforcement after internal controls revealed suspicious activity involving his issuance of Florida State Driver Licenses and identification cards. The Tax Collector’s Office cooperated fully in the investigation and Brown was terminated from his employment.
"Identity and document fraud poses a significant threat to our country's national security. This individual fraudulently issued identity documents to hundreds of individuals with no regard for the people whose identities were compromised," said Susan McCormick, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations Tampa, which oversees the agency's Orlando office that conducted this investigation. "Thanks to cooperation from the Osceola County Tax Collector's Office, we were able to dismantle this scheme."
This case was investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, Department of State‘s Bureau of Diplomatic Security Services, and the Florida Highway Patrol’s Bureau of Criminal Investigations and Intelligence. It was prosecuted by Special Assistant United States Attorney Myrna Amelia Mesa.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
