John T. Floyd Law Firm
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Latest Legal News from the Criminal Courts of Texas and the U.S.
March 29, 2007
NIGERIAN NATIONAL SENTENCED FOR IDENTITY THEFT
(HOUSTON) U. S. Attorney Donald J. DeGabrielle, Jr. announced today that Christian Ifeanyi Okpalaku, age 23, a resident of Missouri City, Texas, was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison by United States District Judge Sim Lake. Okpalaku pled guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft on July 24, 2006. Okpalaku was ordered to serve 5 years under the supervision of the United States Probation Office after he is released from prison and to pay $160,500 in restitution to Southwestern National Bank and Farmer’s National Bank. At the time of his arrest, Okpalaku was a lawful resident alien of the United States. It is expected that he will be deported after he has served his term of incarceration.
On March 17, 2006 Okpalaku was arrested in his automobile pursuant to an arrest warrant for felony credit card abuse from Ft. Bend County, Texas. Postal Inspectors had been told that Okpalaku kept identity theft information and documents in a Federal Express envelope. Inspectors saw a Federal Express envelope in the driver’s door pocket of the car as Okpalaku was being removed from the vehicle. The envelope contained numerous credit reports of fraud victims. Officers also found a fraudulently obtained Arkansas driver’s license in the name of Lester Mann under the driver’s seat of the car along with a credit profile for the true Lester Mann, a resident of Ukiah, California. They also found credit cards in the name of Lester Mann as well as numerous sheets of printed and handwritten credit information for hundreds of people in the defendant’s pockets. A checkbook from a Bank One account in the name of Craig R. and Noelle Carpenter was found in the trunk. Three checks totaling about $200,000 had been written on the account without the consent of the account holder. Okpalaku also possessed a credit profile and signature copy for Craig R. Carpenter. Mr. Carpenter was contacted and it was learned that he had already notified police of the account takeover.
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