Fort Lauderdale Man Sentenced to 5+ Years for Bank Fraud, ID Theft and Firearms Offenses in Maine, Florida and Oregon

PORTLAND, Maine:  A Fort Lauderdale, Florida man was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Portland yesterday for conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud, aggravated identity theft and unlawful possession of a firearm.

U.S. District Judge Nancy Torresen sentenced Leonardo Cameron, 28, to 61 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. Cameron pleaded guilty on November 28, 2022.

According to court records, in November 2020, Cameron and coconspirators broke into unattended vehicles in southern Maine and New Hampshire and stole personal identifying information, such as driver’s licenses and checkbooks. They then used the identifications to cash stolen checks using multiple bank drive-through lanes in southern Maine. As part of the scheme, checks from one theft victim’s account were made payable to another identity theft victim, and another coconspirator impersonated the identity theft victims to cash the stolen checks.

In July 2020, Cameron engaged in similar conduct in Oregon with different coconspirators. In April 2021, when he was arrested in Florida for the Oregon federal bank fraud and identity theft charges, he was found in possession of a firearm and ammunition. A prior felony conviction precluded Cameron from possessing firearms or ammunition. Cameron agreed to transfer jurisdiction over the Florida and Oregon charges to the District of Maine for the purpose of entering guilty pleas to all pending federal charges.

COCONSPIRATOR IN MAINE CASE SENTENCED TO 3 YEARS: On May 3, Travis Paige (aka “Travis McNair” or “Sway”), 26, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was sentenced to three years in prison followed by three years of supervised release for conspiracy to commit bank fraud, bank fraud and aggravated identity theft for his part in the scheme.

The Eliot, Maine Police Department; the FBI in Portland, Maine; the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Portland, Oregon; and HSI in Fort Lauderdale, Florida investigated these cases.

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