Tuesday, April 5, 2005
D.A. BROWN: OFFICE TEMP PLEADS GUILTY TO GRAND LARCENY IN INTERNET AIR TRAVEL RIPOFF; ADMITS USING UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA PLEDGE DRIVE DONOR IDS TO FRAUDULENTLY PURCHASE PACKAGES OF AIRLINE TICKETS, HOTEL STAYS AND CAR RENTALS VALUED AT OVER $14,800; FACES JAIL AND FULL RESTITUTION
Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown announced today that an office temp has pled guilty to identity theft, grand larceny and multiple related offenses for stealing the personal identity information of scores of University of North Carolina public television pledge drive donors, using the information to purchase, among other things, 18 travel packages from Travelocity -- an Internet travel service provider -- and using the purchases valued at over $14,800 to make frequent US Air flights between New York and North Carolina and Virginia. The defendant also admitted that she used the stolen information to fraudulently purchase a Father’s Day basket for her father.
District Attorney Brown said, “Identity theft has become a leading consumer fraud complaint. The defendant has admitted stealing the personal information of generous and trusting donors while she was working on a University of North Carolina public television pledge drive. The conviction should serve as a warning to those who would consider breaking New York's strict and tough identity theft law: You will be detected, apprehended, prosecuted and incarcerated.”
The defendant was arrested in July 2004 by Port Authority of New York and New Jersey detectives at the US Air Terminal at LaGuardia Airport. Detectives recovered documents from the defendant bearing the names of individuals whose identities she had stolen while employed as an office temp during a pledge drive. Customer complaints to Travelocity about credit card billing and reversal of Travelocity charges had sparked an investigation.
District Attorney Brown identified the defendant as Adaeze Okeke, 22, formerly an office temp, of 310 West 143rd Street in Manhattan. The defendant pled guilty earlier today in Queens Supreme Court before Justice James P. Griffin who indicated that he would impose a sentence of six months in jail and five years’ probation on May 16, 2005. The court has ordered the defendant to make full restitution of the $14,827 that she admitted stealing and to pay $1,000 of that amount on the date of sentencing.
The defendant admitted before entering her plea of guilty that she took copies of University of North Carolina pledge sheets containing donors’ personal information and used the information to make fraudulent purchases including: travel packages from Travelocity valued at $11,866.48; travel packages from Expedia.com valued at $2,684.60 and a Father’s Day gift for her father and other gifts for other family members and acquaintances from 1 800 FLOWERS valued at $276.18.
According to the District Attorney, the criminal charges were the result of a joint investigation by the Port Authority Police Department in cooperation with Travelocity, Expedia.com, 1 800 FLOWERS and the District Attorney’s Economic Crimes Bureau.
District Attorney Brown said that the criminal charges alleged that the defendant between January 2, 2004 and July 15, 2004 purchased over 18 travel packages including airline tickets and hotel and car rentals on the Internet from Travelocity -- an internet travel provider -- with credit card numbers belonging to individuals who had not granted permission for their credit card accounts to be used for the purchases. Most of the travel packages were for travel between New York and North Carolina.
The District Attorney said that it was additionally alleged that on July 16, 2004 the defendant and a female companion were observed boarding US Air Flight 3415 and taken into custody. PAPD detectives recovered from defendant Okeke five paper sheets containing University of North Carolina Center for Public Television Program account information records which had the names, addresses, telephone and credit card numbers and expiration dates of individuals that made a donation to UNC Public Television earlier in 2004.
District Attorney Brown said that the investigation determined that in early 2004 defendant Okeke was placed by a temporary employment agency in a position to work for UNC Public television in North Carolina and that her job consisted of data entry of pledges made to the TV station which included the personal and credit card information of the donors. The defendant copied 60 pledge forms without the knowledge or permission of UNC or the donors, made 18 travel package purchases and other purchases over the Internet and flew on trips with a companion that she had purchased using stolen credit card numbers.
The District Attorney said that the investigation subsequently uncovered the additional fraudulent purchases from Expedia.com and 1 800 FLOWERS.
Her co-defendant, Syretta Scott, 23, also of 310 West 143rd Street in Manhattan, previously pled guilty on February 23, 2005 to Scheme to Defraud in the Second Degree and was sentenced to Conditional Discharge.
District Attorney Brown expressed his appreciation to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department and its Superintendent of Police Samuel J. Plumeri Jr., Travelocity including Allison Moss, Customer Service Manager, Expedia.com, 1 800 FLOWERS for their cooperation and support in the investigation and Delores James, Assistant General Manager for the UNCTV.
The investigation was conducted by Port Authority Police Department Detectives Aida Carrasco and Curt King under the supervision of Lieutenant William Hanley and the overall supervision of Superintendent of Police Samuel J. Plumeri Jr.
Assistant District Attorney Allison P. Wright of the District Attorney's Economic Crimes Bureau with the assistance of Investigative Auditor Phylesia A. Lang is prosecuting the case under the supervision of Assistant District Attorneys Gregory C. Pavlides, Bureau Chief, and Diane M. Peress, Deputy Bureau Chief, and the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for Investigations Peter A. Crusco and Deputy Executive Assistant District Attorney for Investigations Linda M. Cantoni.