600 Stolen Identities, and Over $1 Million in Losses, Lead Identity Theft Ringleader to Prison

The leader of an identity theft ring that stole more than 600 identities from U.S. government employees and others has been sentenced to serve 12 years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.

Jenaro Blalock previously pleaded guilty to access device fraud and aggravated identity theft. He was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton, who also ordered Blalock to pay full restitution to victims.

According to court documents, between June 2011 and July 2013, Blalock and co-ringleader Christopher Bush recruited women with access to identity information through their employers to steal more than 600 identities, primarily belonging to employees of the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the U.S. Agency for International Development.   Blalock provided blank driver’s licenses so that Bush could make fraudulent driver’s licenses bearing the victims’ real names, addresses, and dates of birth.   Blalock also made fraudulent credit cards bearing victims’ names.   

Members of the identity theft ring, including Blalock, used those fraudulent driver’s licenses and victims’ Social Security numbers to open instant credit lines at retailers and obtain rental cars, which frequently were sold on the black market with altered vehicle identification numbers.   According to information provided at sentencing, the identity theft ring caused victim losses of between $1 million and $2.5 million.

Bush previously was sentenced to serve 10 years in prison for his role in the scheme.

Contact the author at smeyerow@optonline.net. 

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