A Houston resident has been sentenced to three years of federal probation and ordered to pay restitution for his involvement in a scheme involving the unlawful possession of another person's identification. Jay Brisco, 26, faced charges related to wire fraud for knowingly possessing another individual's identification and pleaded guilty in October 2024. He was sentenced in Gulfport, Mississippi.
The initial investigation began in March 2020, following a complaint from a victim who discovered that a cell phone account had been opened under his name without his authorization. The fraudulent account was traced back to a purchase made at a Walmart store in Gulfport. At the time, Walmart sold cellular phone contracts for various carriers including AT&T and Verizon and partnered with a third-party company, The Revenue Optimization Company (TROC), to facilitate sales.
Brisco worked as a TROC employee at the Gulfport Walmart location where he had access to customer identification information. Utilizing this information, Brisco processed legitimate cellular phone contract applications. However, he also processed fraudulent applications using the same personal data for a second unauthorized contract.
Investigations by Walmart Global Investigations, in conjunction with surveillance footage and contract records, tied Brisco to fraudulent submissions. The case drew the attention of law enforcement, including the Gulfport Police Department and the U.S. Secret Service, due to the jurisdiction over financial fraud and credit card crimes.
Brisco admitted his role in a broader conspiracy, with other participants prosecuted in different areas across Texas and the Southeastern United States. "Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Mississippi, Patrick A. Lemon, praised the investigative work of the United States Secret Service, the Gulfport Police Department, and Walmart Global Investigations." Special Agent-in-Charge Kyle Smith from the Secret Service office in Jackson and Assistant U.S. Attorney Stan Harris were involved in announcing and prosecuting the case, respectively.
