Queens Man Sentenced to 141 Months in Prison for Supplying Social Security Numbers to Fraud Ring

NEWARK—A Queens, N.Y., man was sentenced to 141 months in federal prison today for supplying Social Security numbers to members of an identity fraud ring, Acting U.S. Attorney Ralph J. Marra, Jr. announced.

U.S. District Judge Susan D. Wigenton also ordered Yomi Jagunna, 44, to pay approximately $3.2 million in restitution and to serve three years of supervised release upon the completion of his prison term. Judge Wigenton remanded the defendant into the custody of the U.S. Marshal to begin serving his sentence. Jagunna, unable to post bail in the amount of $1 million, has been held in custody since his arrest on a criminal Complaint in New York on Oct. 28.

Jagunna pleaded guilty before Judge Wigenton on May 8, 2009, to one count of conspiracy to commit identity theft. At his plea hearing, Jagunna admitted that he agreed with others to sell Social Security numbers of victims without their authorization. Jagunna admitted he maintained an account with a commercial database provider in the name of Elam Collection Agency, which Jagunna held out to be a legitimate debt collection company. Using the database account, Jagunna looked up information relating to more than 100,000 individuals, including their Social Security numbers and provided them in person and by e-mail to co-conspirators for approximately $30 per Social Security number.

Jagunna is one of eight defendants who were charged in New Jersey between August and November 2008 in connection with an international identity theft and bank fraud ring. The defendants conspired to deplete available funds from home equity lines of credit (“HELOCs”) and other accounts belonging to identity theft victims, either by engineering fraudulent withdrawals or by gaining unauthorized access to the victims’ on-line bank accounts. Six of the other defendants have pleaded guilty and the case against the sole remaining defendant, Hakeem Olokodana, 41, of Queens, N.Y., is pending trial.

In determining the sentence, Judge Wigenton consulted the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide appropriate sentencing ranges that take into account the severity and characteristics of the offense, the defendant's criminal history, if any, and other factors. The judge, however, was not bound by those guidelines in determining a sentence.

Parole has been abolished in the federal system. Defendants who are given custodial terms must serve nearly all that time.

Marra credited Special Agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Weysan Dun, and Special Agents of the IRS Criminal Investigations Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge William P. Offord, for investigation of the case.

The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Erez Liebermann and Seth Kosto of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Newark.

Defense counsel: Carl Herman, Esq. West Orange

Press Releases | Newark Home