Federal authorities in New Orleans have pressed criminal charges against a man who was previously homeless but has now admitted to being recruited for a multistate financial fraud scheme.
William J. White, a 59-year-old man, has been accused of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and aggravated identity theft. According to his statement to the officers, three men approached him while he lived on Arizona’s streets during the summer. They invited him to participate in a scheme that used fake checks and IDs to obtain cash in various states, including Arizona, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, Nebraska, and Louisiana.
On October 26, White was caught red-handed by local authorities. He brazenly walked into the Hancock Whitney Bank branch located at 3060 N. Causeway Blvd. in Metairie. Posing as someone else, he presented a counterfeit Florida ID to the bank employees and attempted to cash a check that was actually made out to a legitimate customer of the bank. These details were revealed in an affidavit filed by a federal security agent.
The bank teller immediately alerted the authorities upon discovering that the account was under fraud alert and that the ID presented by the individual was counterfeit. Jefferson Parish sheriff’s deputies were called in to investigate the situation. During the investigation, law enforcement confiscated several items from the individual, including a bank card linked to the victim, two additional fake IDs bearing different names, and multiple bank cards.
White informed authorities that he had cashed checks amounting to $130,000 on behalf of his handlers and earned a 10% commission for his work.
The Eastern District Court of Louisiana filed charges against White on December 5th.
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