Four Chinese nationals involved in a significant identity theft scheme have been sentenced to federal prison. They were found guilty of scheming to defraud several domestic retailers out of over $1.2 million. The defendants obtained personally identifiable details from hundreds of victims, such as Social Security numbers and addresses, to create fake driver's licenses. These were then used to access credit at major national retailers, including Ulta Beauty, Sephora, Nordstrom, and others.
The individuals, who entered the United States under false pretenses, were identified as Kar Kee "Steven" Cheung, Qian Guo, Chongming "Ming" Wang, and Jiaozhu "Yanny" Yan. Cheung received a 42-month sentence after pleading guilty to visa fraud and other charges. Guo was sentenced to 33 months for similar charges, while Wang was given 18 months for conspiracy and fraud-related activities. Yan will serve 12 months and one day for visa fraud.
Previously, a fifth defendant, Sizhen "Rachel" Liu, was sentenced in January to 50 months for conspiracy and access device fraud. Another conspirator, Hyun Woo "Scott" Jung, has pleaded guilty to related charges and awaits sentencing.
The ongoing investigation is managed by the State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service, with assistance from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the FBI, and local police departments. The prosecution was overseen by Assistant United States Attorney Kim Meyer of the Violent and Organized Crime Section.
