St. Louis - Brandon Williams, 33, and Laree Dunning, 30, both formerly of Hannibal, Missouri were indicted by a Grand Jury sitting in St. Louis today of mail fraud in association with a scheme to steal from a resident of the elder care facility at which they worked. Williams was the administrator of the Blessing Center of Edina, Missouri in 2016 when it is alleged he and his girlfriend Dunning stole the personally identifiable information of a resident there and applied for a credit card in the resident’s name. Soon after the card arrived at the elder care facility, the Indictment alleges the pair took and card and began making unauthorized purchases with the card.
If convicted, Williams and Dunning face up to 20 years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to $250,000 or both on the mail fraud count. Restitution to the victim is also mandatory. Additionally, Williams faces a minimum of two years’ imprisonment, consecutive to any term on the mail fraud count, for the aggravated identity count returned against him.
The case was investigated by the FBI - Kirksville, Missouri Resident Agency and the Edina (Missouri) Police Department. Tom Albus is handling the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
"It is particularly egregious when people abuse their position of trust to take advantage of our most vulnerable," said Special Agent in Charge Richard Quinn of the FBI St. Louis Division. "If there are other victims of this alleged crime, please contact the FBI."
The Department of Justice Elder Justice Initiative is dedicated to investigating and prosecuting financial crimes targeting older adults. The Eastern District of Missouri Identity Theft Task Force is a group of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies working together to combat identity theft and its related crimes across the St. Louis Community.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
