Man Sentenced For Identity Theft

GREENSBORO, N.C. – A Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, man was sentenced to 23 months of imprisonment for fraudulently obtaining Treasury checks and aggravated identity theft, announced United States Attorney Ripley Rand.

Senior United States District Judge N. Carlton Tilley, Jr., sentenced Herber Alexsander Gonzales-Escobar, 24, to 23 months in prison. Gonzales-Escobar was also ordered to pay a $200.00 special assessment, and will be deported back to Honduras. Gonzales-Escobar had pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining Treasury checks and aggravated identity theft on November 7, 2013.

On July 29, 2013, Gonzales-Escobar was operating a motor vehicle near Pinnacle, North Carolina, when he was stopped by a North Carolina Highway Patrol trooper. During the stop, the trooper discovered four United States Treasury checks made out to four different individuals. Along with the checks were identifying documents specific to each individual’s name as listed on the Treasury checks.

The case was investigated by the North Carolina Highway Patrol, Internal Revenue Service - Criminal Investigation Division, and the United States Secret Service, and prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Frank Chut.