AG James announces conviction of Brooklyn man in identity theft scheme

November 16, 2021 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

New York State Attorney General Letitia James. AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File

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New York State Attorney General Letitia James on Tuesday announced the conviction of Otis Barnes, 29, of Brooklyn, after he used the personal identifying information of a 90-year-old Staten Island resident to cash forged money orders at United States Postal Service offices throughout New York and New Jersey and defrauding a local bank to steal thousands of dollars.

Barnes pleaded guilty to Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, a class “E” felony, with a promised sentence of 1 1/2 to 3 years in prison.

“Fraud is never acceptable, but it is all the more heinous for an individual to steal the identity of an elderly man to line his own pocket,” James said. “Today’s conviction should serve as a message to all that we will not allow illegal schemes like this to go unchecked, and that we will hold those accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”

“Mr. Barnes thought his low-tech money order scam would let him fly below the radar and avoid attention and detection of his crimes,” said USPS Inspector in Charge Philip R. Bartlett. “He was wrong; and today’s plea is recognition by Mr. Barnes that Postal Inspectors and their law enforcement partners have no tolerance for this behavior and will aggressively investigate crime regardless of its scope or complexity.”

A joint investigation by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) and the USPS Inspection Service revealed that, between March and July 2018, Barnes assumed the elderly victim’s identity on several occasions by presenting himself as the victim at several USPS offices and at a check cashing establishment.

As proof of his stolen identity, Barnes used a forged New York State Driver’s License that listed the elderly victim’s name, home address, and date of birth, but that contained Barnes’ photograph in order to cash several forged USPS money orders in the victim’s name.

Prior to cashing the forged money orders, Barnes used a mobile depositing app to deposit the same money orders — under his own name — into a bank account he controlled. Barnes then withdrew the money out of the account before the bank became aware of the fraud.

Because mobile deposit enables a customer to take a picture of a check or money order while maintaining possession of the check or money order itself, Barnes was able to then alter the money orders to substitute the name on the order and cash them a second time at local post offices.

The OAG’s indictment charged Barnes with the crimes of Identity Theft in the First Degree, Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the First and Second Degrees, and Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree.

On Tuesday, before the Hon. Alexander Jeong, Barnes pleaded guilty to Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, a class “E” felony. On Jan. 20, 2022, Barnes is scheduled to be sentenced to 1 1/2 to 3 years in state prison.