DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
CONTACT: SUELLEN PIERCE
704.338.3120
FAX 704.227.0264
ASHEVILLE, N.C. - An indictment charging seven Asheville-area individuals with
conspiracy to commit fraud, including bank fraud, damage to property, theft of public money,
theft of personal property, and aggravated identity theft, in connection with a series of car breakins
on federal lands in and around Buncombe County, was filed in U.S. District Court today in Asheville.
United States Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert is joined in making today’s announcement by the United States Forest Service.
According to allegations contained in the 22-count federal bill of indictment, Luis
Francisco CAMACHO, 21, Anthony David SEXTON,19, Elizabeth Leal GARCIA, 22, Jamel
Richard MOORE, 22, Stephanie M. PARKER, 33, James Augustus WILLIAMS, 24, and Neal
Jesse JOINER, 21, all engaged in a scheme to commit identity theft, credit card fraud, bank
fraud, and car break-ins beginning on or about December 1, 2006, and continuing until on or
about January 17, 2007, primarily in Buncombe County at the United States Forest Service
parking area at Bent Creek. Defendant CAMACHO is alleged to have been the leader of the
conspiracy, having taught the others how to break into and steal the contents of vehicles parked
on National Forest Lands, and at other local Buncombe County sites, according to the indictment.
The group is alleged to have stolen credit cards, checks, and personal identification documents
from automobiles and to have used those items, as well as other means, to obtain goods, cash,
and services at retail stores in the area, such as Target, K-Mart, Best Buy, and area pawn shops.
These transactions are alleged to have been made without the consent of any of the owners of
these credit cards and identification documents. The four-month investigation was spearheaded
by investigators with the U.S. Forest Service who received substantial assistance from the
Asheville Police Department and the Buncombe and Transylvania County Sheriffs’ Offices.
Specific dates and sites of vehicle break-ins alleged in the bill of indictment include:
December 17, 2006 - Rice Pinnacle U.S. Forest Service parking area at Bent Creek
December 26, 2006 - Ledford Branch trailhead, U.S. Forest Service parking area at
Bent Creek
December 29, 2006 - U.S. Forest Service parking area at Bent Creek
January 3, 2007 - U.S. Forest Service parking area at Bent Creek
January 6, 2007 - U.S. Forest Service parking area at Looking Glass Rock
trailhead, Transylvania County
January 10, 2007 - U.S. Forest Service parking area at Bent Creek
January 11, 2007 - Beaver Lake Park
January 17, 2007 - U.S. Forest Service parking area at Bent Creek
Counts Two through Eleven of the indictment all allege individual instances of aggravated identity theft. Aggravated identity theft occurs when a person, during and in relation to certain felony violations (bank fraud, for example) knowingly uses, without lawful authority, a means of identification of another person. Aggravated identity theft carries a penalty of two years’ imprisonment in addition to the punishment provided for the underlying felony. Count 12 alleges that Defendant Stephanie M. PARKER committed identity theft with an underlying felony applicable under North Carolina State Law. Counts 13 - 21 allege that Defendants CAMACHO, SEXTON, GARCIA, MOORE, WILLIAMS, and JOINER committed acts of motor vehicle breaking and/or entering within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States of America. Count 22 charges Defendant Elizabeth Leal Garcia with having allegedly been an unlawful user of and addicted to a controlled substance while in possession of a firearm.
A notice of forfeiture and finding of probable cause included in the indictment seeks all
property involved in the alleged violations or traceable to any of the alleged violations be
forfeited to the United States, specifically a 1997 Dodge truck.
If convicted on all charges, the defendants face varying amounts of time up to and
including terms of 30 years’ imprisonment. However, it is important to note that any sentence
received upon conviction will be influenced by the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which the
Court consults in order to determine each defendant’s actual sentence. Sentences are based upon a formula that takes into account the severity and characteristics of the offense and each
defendant’s criminal history, if any.
The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. In the American justice
system, a person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty in a court of
law.
List of Defendants
U.S. v. Louis Francisco Camacho, et al
DOCKET NUMBER:
LUIS FRANCISCO CAMACHO
ANTHONY DAVID SEXTON
ELIZABETH LEAL GARCIA
JAMEL RICHARD MOORE
NEAL JESSE JOINER
JAMES AUGUSTUS WILLIAMS
STEPHANIE M. PARKER