2 Georgians Sentenced for Identity Theft Scam

Two Georgia residents have been sentenced to time in federal prison for their roles in an identity theft and access device card scheme.

According to authorities, Jermaine Aldred, 32, of Atlanta, was sentenced to six years and four months in prison and ordered to pay restitution of more than $700,000, with the exact amount not yet determined by the court. Dontarrion Bratton, 31, of Austell, was sentenced to two years and six months in prison and ordered to pay restitution more than $150,000, with the exact amount not yet determined by the court.

In April 2007, law enforcement officials began looking into Aldred's involvement in a stolen check cashing ring. They found that between February and June 2007, Aldred cashed more than $500,000 in stolen United States Treasury checks. Aldred reportedly used fraudulent Georgia driver's licenses and cashed the checks under the idea that he was working with an income tax preparer and the stolen checks were tax refund checks.

In November 2007, officials with banking and debit card processing companies informed law enforcement that bank accounts, which included those of military service members, had been fraudulently accessed.

During the investigation, law enforcement officials learned that Aldred, Bratton and a number of other unidentified co-conspirators obtained stolen debit card numbers and purchased more than $230,000 in money orders. Aldred and Bratton were identified in video surveillance purchasing money orders using the stolen debit card numbers.