Miami-Dade County Resident Sentenced to 8 ½ Years in Prison for Identity Theft Fraud Scheme Involving Skimming and Manufacturing Credit Cards and Filing False Tax Returns

A Miami-Dade County resident was sentenced to 102 months in prison, to be followed by 3 years of supervised release, for operating a scheme to skim credit card numbers, manufacture counterfeit credit cards and file false federal income tax returns.

Wifredo A. Ferrer, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Kelly R. Jackson, Special Agent in Charge, Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), and J.D. Patterson, Director, Miami Dade Police Department (MDPD), made the announcement.

Christopher M. Mack, 31, previously pled guilty to one count of possession of fifteen or more counterfeit and unauthorized access devices, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(3), one count of possession of device making equipment, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1029(a)(4), and one count of aggravated identity theft, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1028A(a)(1). 

According to court documents, Mack engaged in a scheme to skim credit card numbers from the customers of a South Beach restaurant.  Pursuant to the investigation and the execution of a search warrant at Mack’s residence, officers discovered a magnetic stripe encoder, a credit card skimmer, over 100 counterfeit credit cards embossed with Mack’s name, three spiral notebooks filled with the personal identifying information of approximately 600 individuals, loose sheets of paper filled with over 1,000 SocialSecurity numbers, and thirteen white envelopes containing approximately $200,000 worth of Western Union money order receipts.

Law enforcement reviewed the contents of the spiral notebooks and discovered numerous handwritten entries detailing the filing of federal tax returns. The IRS confirmed that the entries corresponded to fraudulently filed tax returns submitted to the agency. 

Mr. Ferrer commended the investigative efforts of IRS-CI and the MDPD.  The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew J. Langley.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.