19 Atlantans Convicted in Stolen Check, Identity Theft Ring

Nineteen defendants have been convicted in a large, stolen U.S. Treasury check and identity theft ring, with the final defendants convicted by a jury this past Friday.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the defendants ran an elaborate scheme in which they stole checks, manufactured fake state driver’s licenses to use for identity theft and check cashing, and opened credit card accounts in the names of unsuspecting victims.

“Fraud and identity theft crimes are a serious and growing problem in our community,” said U.S. Attorney John Horn. “Thieves who commit these crimes prey upon unsuspecting victims, steal their money, and compromise the victims’ livelihoods, sometimes causing lasting financial charges for them and their families.”

According to prosecutors, from June 2012 until September 2014, the defendants worked together to obtain and cash United States Treasury checks stolen from the U.S. mail. The checks were originally issued to people entitled to the federal funds, including taxpayers receiving refunds, retired federal employees receiving pension benefits, military families, and Social Security beneficiaries receiving Social Security and disability payments.

The defendants played different roles in the scheme.

Erica Willis, Dexter Willis, and Antonio Slatton sold stolen checks to other defendants. Check purchasers, including Hussain Abdullah, Asad Abdullah, Hudhayfah Abdullah and Hafid Abdur-Rabbani, were frequent customers of the check sellers and purchased checks by either paying 25% of the check’s face value or splitting the proceeds from the check in half with the supplier.

After purchasing the stolen checks, the defendants would pay identification manufacturers like Ibrahim Abdur-Rabbani and Khalil Majeed to make fake Georgia driver’s licenses matching the names and addresses of the victims, but containing photos of “check runners.” In exchange for a fee, the “ check runners” would use the fake driver’s licenses to cash the stolen checks at retail locations throughout Atlanta,such as Wal-Mart and Publix.

The defendants are:

• Asad Abdullah, 37, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds, theft of government funds, aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to commit credit card fraud.
• Erica Willis, 36, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds, theft of government funds, and aggravated identity theft.
• Hussain Abdullah, 34, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds, theft of government funds, and aggravated identity theft.
• Hudhayfah Abdullah, 32, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds, theft of government funds, and aggravated identity theft.
• Hafid Abdur-Rabbani, 37, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds, theft of government funds, and aggravated identity theft.
• Ibrahim Abdur-Rabbani, 33, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds, theft of government funds, and aggravated identity theft.
• Khalil Majeed, 35, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds, theft of government funds, and aggravated identity theft.
• Ali Al-Amin, 36, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds, theft of government funds, and aggravated identity theft.
• Zakariyah Abdullah, 35, was convicted of aggravated identity theft and using a passport belonging to another.
• Sayeed Valdez, 38, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds.
• Antonio Slaton, 37, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds.
• Cory Howell, 43, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds.
• Damion Davis, 31, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds.
• Dexter Willis, 36, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds.
• JoAnn Drigo, 37, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds.
• Muhajid Ahmad, 33, was convicted of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds.
• Billee Cosby, 34, was convicted of conspiracy to commit credit card fraud.
• Mikal Majeed, 33, was convicted of aggravated identity theft.
• Jasmine Proctor, 20, was convicted of interfering with the U.S. Mail.