ALBUQUERQUE - Jesse Tucker, 36, of Tijeras, N.M., pled guilty today in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., to fraud, identity theft and theft of mail charges, announced U.S. Attorney John C. Anderson and Inspector in Charge Melisa Llosa of the Phoenix Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
Tucker was charged in an indictment filed on Feb. 14, 2018, with eight counts of bank fraud, six counts of aggravated identity theft, and one count of theft or receipt of stolen mail. The bank fraud counts alleged that between Nov. 2016 and May 2017, Tucker fraudulently obtained almost $70,000 through a scheme to defraud that involved the use of stolen personal identifiers, checks, and other financial instruments obtained from stolen mail. The aggravated identity theft counts alleged that Tucker used the identities of others without lawful authority between Nov. 2016 and May 2017, and the theft or receipt of stolen mail count alleged that in June 2017, Tucker unlawfully possessed stolen mail, including checks and financial instruments, taken from a U.S. Postal depository in June 2017. According to the indictment, Tucker committed these crimes in Bernalillo and Valencia Counties, N.M.
During today’s change of plea hearing, Tucker pled guilty to the eight bank fraud charges, two of the aggravated identity theft charges, and the theft or receipt of stolen mail charge. In entering the guilty plea, Tucker admitted that between Nov. 2016 and May 2017, he used the personal identifiers of nine individuals, which he obtained from stolen mail, to create and obtain counterfeit identification cards and drivers’ licenses that but bore his photograph. Tucker then used the fraudulent identification cards and licenses to falsify checks, complete credit applications, and apply for loans from financial institutions. Tucker also admitted using the personal identifiers of others in his efforts fraudulently to obtain loans while knowing that they belonged to real people. Tucker also acknowledged that on June 6, 2017, law enforcement found a large volume of stolen mail belonging to other individuals in his residence.
At sentencing, Tucker faces a maximum penalty of 30 years of imprisonment on the bank fraud charges and a maximum penalty of five years of imprisonment on the stolen mail charge. He also faces a mandatory minimum penalty of two years of imprisonment on the aggravated identity theft charges, which must be served consecutive to any other sentence imposed on the other fraud charges. A sentencing hearing has yet to be scheduled.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service investigated this case and it is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Holland S. Kastrin.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
