On March 18, 2020, in the Western District of Michigan, Zachary Thomas was sentenced in a scheme involving bank fraud and identity theft. In November 2019, Thomas pled guilty to bank fraud, aggravated identity theft, and passing a U.S. Treasury check with a false or forged endorsement.

According to the indictment, between July 2018 and October 2018, Thomas and his coconspirators stole mail from mailboxes, including replacement checks from financial institutions, bank account checks, driver's licenses, social security account number cards, tax documents, and other documents containing personal identifying information. As part of the scheme, Thomas would alter the name of the payee on stolen checks and forge the names of accountholders on the checks, or otherwise falsely endorse them. In August 2018, Thomas, with an intent to defraud, passed a U.S. Treasury tax refund check with a face value of $141,073.89, made payable to a third party and bearing a forged endorsement and signature.

In furtherance of the scheme, Thomas opened accounts at various financial institutions using the names of the individuals whose personal identifying information was stolen as part of the scheme. Thomas would deposit the stolen checks into various accounts, using automated teller machines (ATMs) and his phone through the financial institutions' mobile deposit application. Thomas would withdraw funds at various ATMs and purchase goods using debit or credit cards associated with the accounts before the financial institutions discovered the checks were fraudulent.

Thomas was sentenced to 78 months' imprisonment followed by four years' supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $29,415.32 in restitution and a special assessment fee of $300.

Source:  The facts in this case narrative come from the following publicly available documents: W.D. Mich. Indict. filed Oct. 8, 2019; W.D. Mich. Plea Agr. filed Nov. 27, 2019; and W.D. Mich. Judgment filed Mar. 19, 2020.