A forged check and money laundering ring based in Brooklyn that compromised at least 30 bank accounts at JP Morgan Chase Bank (“Chase Bank”) and Citibank, and stole more than $150,000 has been taken down. Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr., announced the indictment of 37 individuals All of the defendants are charged with Conspiracy, and the ringleaders are additionally charged with Grand Larceny, Money Laundering, and in some cases, Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument and Identity Theft.
…According to documents filed in court and statements made on the record in court, from approximately December 2009 to October 2010, ringleaders Earl Barranco, a/k/a “HOOD,” 25, Maurice Hilton, 24, Andre Bevans, 20, and JD Dap Cuz offered Chase Bank and Citibank accountholders money in exchange for access to their bank accounts. The defendants then created counterfeit checks using the account information of at least 30 uninvolved individuals and deposited these checks into the accounts owned by their co-conspirators. Once the funds were available for withdrawal, the defendants fraudulently withdrew or directed the withdrawal of money from tellers and ATM machines. The defendants also used the ATM cards of these Chase Bank and Citibank accountholders to purchase more than 250 United States Postal Money Orders fraudulently.
Detailed news link: here