Even people who are careful with their personal information can be victimized by identity theft, but these tips from the U.S. Postal Inspection Service can help.
l Review your consumer credit reports annually.
l Shred and destroy unwanted documents that contain personal information.
l Deposit mail in U.S. Postal Service collection boxes.
l Do not leave mail in your mailbox overnight or on weekends.
l More suggestions on how to avoid identity fraud are posted at
http://www.usps.com/postalinspectors.
Jacqueline Gulla found her victims by "mailboxing," or swiping envelopes and packages out of mailboxes.
Thanh Ngo admitted stealing financial data from customers of his employer, American Express.
Kimberly Ann Bailey tricked a new mother into giving out personal information about herself and her husband by posing as a hospital employee.
The three Salt Lake City residents are part of a trend of using the names and financial information of others to steal money and merchandise. As the offense started to become more prevalent, authorities set up the Utah Identity Theft Task Force (ITTF), which operates as part of the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force.
Since its inception in November 2004, "the task force has been a resounding success," said Kathy Roberts, inspector in charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service's Denver division, which includes Utah.
At a recent news conference in Salt Lake City, Roberts and other officials ticked off Utah ITTF statistics from the past 15 months - 190 investigations launched; 1,366 victims of identity theft identified; about 150 indictments returned with convictions won in 127 of them so far; and more than 25 training sessions held on fraud prevention for law enforcement agencies, community groups and merchants.
Identity thieves use stolen information to obtain credit cards, cash checks made out to others, take out loans, collect tax refunds due to another taxpayer and get a driver license or passport under a false name. In addition to cheating merchants and banks, they cause financial hardship to their victims, who often are left with bad credit ratings that take a long time to correct.
The majority of cases handled by the identity theft task force involve checks, credit cards and other items stolen out of the mail. Thieves using someone else's personal information to get a credit card is the next biggest category.
Among the ways scam artists find information is by going through customer records at their own jobs or by pretending to be telemarketers.
Identity thieves run the gamut from individuals to members of street gangs to white collar criminals, according to Timothy Fuhrman, special agent in charge of the FBI's Salt Lake City office.
Fuhrman and Paul Warner, who recently stepped down as U.S. attorney for Utah to become a federal magistrate, said many thieves are drug addicts trying to support their habit.
"Meth drives the train on a lot of crimes in our district," Warner said.
Punishment for identity theft-related crimes can be stiff. Aggravated identity fraud carries a minimum mandatory sentence of two years, which must be served after all sentences are served.
Other maximum terms are 30 years for bank fraud; 15 years for identity theft; 10 years for possession of stolen checks; and five years for conspiracy to commit identity fraud and possession of stolen mail.
There is no parole in the federal system, where many of these crimes are prosecuted, and probation is rare, Warner said.
Gulla, 32, who authorities say victimized more than 100 people, pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft. She is scheduled to be sentenced on March 8.
Ngo, 29, who admitted opening 18 new credit card accounts with stolen information, pleaded guilty to aggravated identity fraud and was sentenced last year to four years in prison. The 34-year-old Bailey is serving a six-year stint behind bars.
All three were prosecuted in U.S. District Court.
pmanson@sltrib.com
