Identity Theft—Montana

Five individuals in Billings, Montana, have been charged with wire fraud and aggravated identity theft.^[1] The five individuals, who all pleaded not guilty, are accused of buying items from a Billings, Montana, Wal-Mart with stolen checks.^[2] They then allegedly returned the goods for cash, which they divided among themselves.^[3]

Wire Fraud
Under 18 U.S.C. § 1343, it is a crime for a person to devise a scheme or artifice to defraud, and then use the nation’s telecommunications technology to carry out that scheme. The punishment for a violation of section 1343 is a fine, imprisonment for up to 20 years (30 if a financial institution is harmed), or both.

Aggravated Identity Theft
Under 18 U.S.C. § 1028A(a), if a person knowingly uses a means of identification of another person during the commission of a wire fraud offense,^[4] that person will be sentenced to an additional two years of prison.

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[1] 5 Charged in Identity Theft, Billings Gazette, Nov. 30, 2005, available here.
[2] Id.
[3] Id.
[4] 18 U.S.C. § 1028A(c)(5).