JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — An individual who can only be identified as John Doe has been found guilty of seven counts of aggravated identity theft, six counts of falsely representing a social security number, and one count of passport fraud, according to U.S. Attorney Robert E. O’Neill.

Law enforcement has not been able to confirm the identity of John Doe. He was arrested on a federal warrant while he was in state custody for fraud charges.

http://liarcatchers.com/identity_theft_investigation.html

Doe faces a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in federal prison for each aggravated identity theft charge, up to five years in federal prison for each charge of falsely representing a Social Security Number, and a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison for the passport fraud, according to the release.

He remains in the custody of United States Marshals Service pending his sentencing hearing, which is scheduled for August 27.

Doe assumed the identity of a living victim and had been living under that assumed identity for approximately 22 years, according to court documents and evidence presented during trial.

Using the victim’s social security number, he obtained at least 23 government-issued forms of identification. The different forms of identification include a passport, two Mayport Naval Station Military contractor identification cards, three Florida identification cards, and six replacement social security cards.

The Mayport Naval Station identification cards allowed Doe to have unescorted access on at least five different Navy vessels. He also used the victim’s personal identification information at JAXPORT to fraudulently obtain a Transportation Worker Identification Credentials badge issued by the Transportation Security Administration.

The credentials gave him unescorted access to secure areas of JAXPORT, including the Blount Island Marine Terminal.

GAITHERSBURG, MARYLAND (WUSA)–Police have a warning about fake IDs that young people nationwide are purchasing from a very popular website.

9 Wants You to Know that buyers under 21 may be getting a lot more out of the transaction than an identification card.

If you’re in high school or college, there’s a pretty good chance you’ve heard of ID Chief. But if you’re a parent, you probably have no clue. Teens say it’s an easy way to get a fake i.d., not realizing their real identities are being stolen in the process.

http://liarcatchers.com/identity_theft_investigation.html

Ironically, the website reads, “We are located in a safe country. Your info is safe with us.”

That’s part of the sales pitch behind IDChief.com, the wildly popular China-based website that appears to be doing a booming business.

The IDs feature holograms, encrypted personal information and a level of sophistication so high that they’re able to pass through scanners used by bars and liquor stores to prevent minors from buying booze.

“The person’s name, his date of birth, that information is being encrypted right on the strip so when you scan the driver’s license, it will come up with valid information on the front. Where in the old days, they didn’t have the ability to do that,” said Montgomery County Police Officer Bill Morrison.

Unsuspecting teenagers may be buying more than access to alcohol. They’re being targeted for identity theft.

“ID Chief is selling their information. And kids are now finding out that they have thousands of, hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of debt,” said Officer Morrison.

And, according to law enforcement, the Chinese scam artists are heading to students’ Facebook pages to cull additional information to further their scheme.

Remarkably, the site even warns buyers to beware of fake id scams. It reads, “‘It’s not like you can file a police report for your bad fake id.”

With the help of Montgomery County Police and Sarah, a police intern, 9 News Now ordered a fraudulent Pennsylvania driver’s license. We uploaded her signature and photograph and as required, wired 200 dollars via Western Union.

Our fake ids arrived, after making the 8,000 mile journey from Gwangzhou, China to Gaithersburg, Maryland.

They came packaged in an envelope marked bracelet. Inside was a gift box and an actual red bracelet. But underneath the padding, wrapped in plain white paper, were a pair of fake ids.

“This is as authentic as it can possibly be,” said Montgomery County Police Sgt. Mark White.

They even passed the black light test-often used by police to detect fake ids in dark places, like bars or nightclubs.

“I wouldn’t consider this fake at all. I wouldn’t think twice about this id,” said Sgt. White.

Police warn that anyone who’s underage and using a fake ID faces a penalty especially harsh by teenager’s standards. They could lose their driver’s license for up to a year and it may impact the cost of your car insurance.

They are the tools of the identity thief’s trade, federal agents say — a laptop computer and a credit card reader.

Homeland Security investigators say they found these items and other evidence in the Southwest Miami-Dade home of Jorge Eduardo Liy, an accused mastermind of a multi-million dollar identity theft ring stretching from South Florida to Canada and Eastern Europe.

http://liarcatchers.com/identity_theft_investigation.html

Investigators say this case is one more piece of evidence proving an ignominious distinction for South Florida.

“South Florida, in particular, is the number one area in the United States for identity theft,” said Gerard O’Neill, Assistant Special Agent in Charge with U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement and Homeland Security Investigations.

Agents say cases like the Liy case are popping up more and more.

Federal agent Deborah Morrisey says Liy made tons of phony credit cards out of his home — realistic even down to the foil markings on the back of the card.

Agents say Liy made the cards with thousands of stolen credit card numbers purchased from criminal groups in Canada and Eastern Europe. It is believed — according to the feds — that the stolen numbers were acquired through a myriad of ways, including home break-ins and through large scale rip-offs of data.

“(The criminal groups) are making a huge profit by selling batches of these credit card numbers,” Morrisey said.

In a twist, Morrisey says Liy had his employees buy prepaid gift cards with the phony credit cards, which made it more difficult to trace his operation.

Morrisey said those gift cards were then sold at a discount online. All told, investigators believe the operation made at least $4 million dollars.

“(He was) basically breaking the chain between himself and the fraudulent credit card and laundering the proceeds of the fraudulent credit card,” Morrisey explained. “Because even if you got back to the gift card it was probably sold to an innocent individual online.”

When the feds searched Liy’s house they say they found small bags crammed full of fraudulent credit cards, a hard drive with a trove of credit card numbers on it and a gun.

Morrissey said this case shows why your personal information — whether it’s credit card information or a social security number — is so valuable.

“The public in general are being attacked regularly for this precious information because this information is economic gold,” Morrisey said.

O’Neill says South Florida is a haven for these crimes because of the transient population, number of tourists and international economy.

O’Neill warns the public that scam operations like this one prove consumers need to wary every time they hand over their credit or debit card or provide their personal information.

“Know who you’re giving your information to and always ask the question, ‘What is this going to be used for?’” O’Neill told CBS 4′s Carey Codd. “The consumer always needs to be vigilant and ask the follow up question.”

In addition, O’Neill recommends everyone purchase a shredder and shred important documents.

O’Neill said there are estimates that 500,000 people across the country have their identites victimized each year, which costs financial institutions $750 million dollars in losses.

“At the end of the day it’s going to be the credit card companies and the banks will take a hit,” Morrisey said, adding that consumers ultimately pay the price through higher fees and costs.

We tried to reach Liy’s lawyer for a comment but he did not return our phone call.

Federal investigators say Liy pleaded guilty to the charges and will be sentenced next month. Investigators say Liys faces between 5 and 8 years in prison and could be forced to pay a substantial restitution.