Feds Charge 53 In Crackdown Of Identity Theft Ring
Bergen, NJ, United States (AHN) – Federal agents swooped down on a suspected identity theft ring in New Jersey on Thursday and arrested dozens of suspects.
Forty-seven people were arrested in the massive crackdown. They face allegations including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, conspiracy to commit credit card fraud, and unlawfully using identification documents to defraud the United States.
Prosecutors say the suspects were part of a group of mostly Korean immigrants in Bergen County who sold identification documents that were used to commit fraud. Allegedly led by Sang-Hyun Park, the group obtained Social Security numbers beginning with the prefix 586, which are issued to Chinese working in U.S. territories such as Guam and Saipan. The Social Security numbers were used to secure genuine drivers licenses and other state identification cards.
The group would then “build up” the credit scores of the Chinese identities on the IDs by attaching these identities to existing credit card accounts as authorized users. The suspects allegedly would then guide customers using identities with good credit ratings to open bank accounts, obtain credit cards and apply for loans, including those guaranteed by the federal Small Business Administration.
The fraudulently obtained credit cards were used by the group to buy expensive goods that were later sold. The cards were also used for fake transactions with conspiring business owners to obtain cash. The suspects are believed to have paid for the fake charges by drawing on other fraudulently opened bank accounts.
Among those charged were Chun-O Kim, owner and operator of what prosecutors said was a nonexistent general contracting company, and Nathan Buschman, a manager at a JPMorgan Chase branch in Edgewater.
Also part of the criminal complaint are Zakchary Benji, a loan officer in a Clifton bank, and Kang-Hyok Choi, who has been in custody since his arrest in 2008, when he is believed to have murdered three people who may have been involved in the identity theft operation.
Apart from JPMorgan, other institutions that were defrauded were Citibank and PNC Financial Services.
“The activity in this instance was a virtual crime superstore,” Special Agent in Charge Michael Ward said in a statement. “The criminal activity was sophisticated, and the extent of the fraud committed by this group is believed to be substantial, if not staggering.”
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