NY Fed Bank IT Worker Charged with ID Theft and Fraud

Via finextra.com -

A former IT worker at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (FRB-NY) and his brother have been arrested for allegedly stealing the personal information of bank employees and using it to obtain loans.

Curtis Wiltshire worked as an information and technical analyst at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in lower Manhattan, providing him with access to information about other employees, including names, dates of birth, social security numbers and photographs.

In February, a bank investigator found two 2006 student loan applications, worth a combined $73,000 in the names of other people, on a thumb drive attached to Wiltshire's computer.

The search also revealed a fake driver's license, containing a picture of a bank employee.

Meanwhile, Wiltshire's brother Kenneth is accused of using fake identities in an attempt to obtain a loan for a boat.

Authorities say a postal inspector investigating loans obtained with fake documents was led to a mailbox in New Jersey that had been opened with a phony driver's license bearing the picture of a FRB-NY employee.

The mailbox was being used by Kenneth Wiltshire to receive documents for a boat loan in someone else's name, says the FBI. A phony driver's license with the picture of another FRB-NY employee was also used in connection with the boat loan application, as well as a fake income tax return in the name of a Fed employee.

Curtis Wiltshire is charged with bank fraud, fraud in connection with identification documents, and aggravated identity theft and could face over 30 years in jail. Kenneth Wiltshire, charged with mail fraud and aggravated identity theft, faces a maximum sentence of 22 years in prison.