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Five fraudsters had a pretty unique scam operating out of the St. Tammany Parish area. They would hold phony job fairs – with the actual intention of obtaining identification information from those who attended. Once they had the information, the five fraudsters would assume the job applicants’ identities by producing fake driver’s licenses in the victims’ names. Next, phony business account checks were produced and made out to the victims. Then, with the phony picture identification, the bogus checks were cashed at grocery and convenience stores.
The five are identified as Johnny Odoms, Samatti Cagnolatti, Gillis Bernard Donald, William Aaron Skinner and Rachel Smooth. The first to be arrested was Cagnolatti. When Odoms, Skinner and Smooth heard that their friend had been taken into custody, they panicked and left their hotel room without paying the $6 in phone charges they owed. The motel management reported the petty theft to the local police, and when the officers entered the room the trio had been occupying, they found a cache of phony driver’s licenses. With a description of the suspects’ vehicle, a late model black Range Rover, officers were able to locate them later in the day at another motel. When the vehicle was searched, officers found $65,000 worth of high-tech equipment – including digital photo-scanners and computers – allegedly used in the criminal enterprise.
The federal indictment contains the following charges:
Cagnolatti – 64 counts of possession of stolen property, false use of a Social Security number, bank fraud and conspiracy to commit bank fraud. He faces maximum fines of $19 million and 680 years in jail.
Donald – One count of bank fraud, one count of conspiracy and three counts of possession of stolen property. He faces a $2.2 million maximum fine and a possible 75 years in prison.
Odoms – Nine counts of money laundering, one count of bank fraud, one count of false use of a Social Security number. He faces a possible fine of $6.7 million and a possible sentence of 240 years.
Skinner – 54 counts of possession of stolen property, one count of bank fraud, one count of false use of a Social Security number. He faces a maximum fine of $6.7 million and a 240-year maximum sentence.
Smooth – One count of conspiracy. She could be fined $250,000 and sent to prison for up to five years.
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