A man and a woman from San Antonio were recently given sentences for using SIM swapping in November 2021 to gain access to and transfer more than $250,000 from the cryptocurrency accounts of their victims.

Court records show SIM swapping allowed Zena Elisa Dounson, a 24-year-old employee of the AT&T shop in Ingram Park Mall, to add Andrew Percy Trujillo, 22, as an authorized user to numerous accounts and add devices to these accounts, according to a March 16 news release. Dounson then transferred the SIM card credentials of the victims to the phony SIM cards in Trujillo's phones which then enabled him to move money from victims' investment accounts to his own when their devices were locked due to fraud suspicion.

“SIM swapping is a rapidly growing type of fraud scheme that everyone should be aware of,” U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza, of the Western District of Texas, said in the release. “It’s particularly dangerous because it abuses access to two-factor authentication systems which are intended to provide additional security. Anyone who uses two-factor authentication should be mindful that it is not foolproof, and to still be on the lookout for any suspicious activity involving their phones.”

In August 2022, both defendants entered guilty pleas to one count of conspiring to commit wire fraud, as well as computer fraud and abuse, the release reported. Trujillo received a 33-month prison term plus three years of supervised release March 15 while Dounson was given a split sentence of two months in prison and five years of probation. Both also have to make restitution in the amount of $282,000.

“The defendants in this case callously devised a scheme to transfer more than $250,000 of cryptocurrency from multiple victims for their own personal gain," Special Agent in Charge Oliver E. Rich Jr., of the FBI San Antonio Division, said in the release. "This sentencing brings a measure of justice to victims and holds the defendants accountable for their actions.”