PENSACOLA, Fla. – A Pensacola man who helped create bank accounts under stolen identities and supplied accomplices with fake U.S. passport cards and fraudulent checks has been sentenced to 42 months in federal prison.
Vontavius Jamaal Bradley, 23, had previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud, use of a false passport and aggravated identity theft.
The scheme involved opening accounts at banks and credit unions around the Pensacola area using the personal information of real people who had not given permission for their identities to be used, according to court documents.
Once the accounts were open, prosecutors said Bradley and his co-defendants used them to cash stolen, altered or counterfeit checks.
Bradley’s role went beyond providing the stolen personal information.
According to prosecutors, he obtained fraudulent identification documents, including false U.S. passport cards, and provided them to others involved in the scheme. He also supplied fraudulent checks that were used to carry out transactions.
The money was then divided among those involved.
Federal prosecutors identified Elizabeth Ann Rogers and Donny Bernard Ross as Bradley’s co-defendants. Both have pleaded guilty to the same charges and are awaiting sentencing before U.S. District Judge M. Casey Rodgers.
In addition to his prison sentence, Bradley was ordered to pay $18,264 in restitution to financial institutions and victims whose identities were stolen.
The investigation involved the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, Homeland Security Investigations, the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Alicia H. Forbes prosecuted the case.