InstantNewsKaty.com

An area man who plead guilty to charges he operated an identity theft scheme that involved re-directing victims’ mail has been sentenced to 111 months in federal prison by U. S. District Judge Gray H. Miller.

David Henry Anthony, 38, will serve 87 months on an access device fraud conviction, followed by a mandatory 24 months for aggravated identity theft charges, according to U.S. Attorney Tim Johnson.

The prison terms will be followed by a three-year term of supervised release. Additionally, the court ordered Anthony to pay $143,794.27 in restitution to 21 different victims, which include individuals and financial institutions.

Anthony pleaded guilty to both counts last March.

The investigation leading to the charges against Anthony was initiated in January 2008 by the United States Postal Inspection Service after the Harris County Sheriff’s Office Financial Crimes Unit received a complaint from an individual about his identity having been stolen and credit card fraud seeming to be connected to a number of fraudulent change of address orders.

Through further investigation, postal inspectors located a number of victims and identified Anthony as the culprit. Anthony would divert a victim’s mail to addresses he controlled and, by using the victim’s identity, would apply for credit cards.

It was determined Anthony received at least 60 credit cards using various names, as well as19 different forms of identification. A total of 17 victims were identified, including some from the Katy area.

Anthony used the credit cards and fraudulent forms of identity to make purchases, including jewelry, without authorization at various merchants.  

In July 2008, inspectors executed a federal search warrant at Anthony’s purported place of business on Tidwell Road and his residence on Maxey Road. Both addresses had been used in the identity theft scheme to redirect victims’ mail.

The search resulted in the discovery and seizure of multiple identification documents in various victims’ names containing a photo of Anthony, credit cards, statements, account activity notes and transaction receipts, as well as credit reports and other similar documents relating to the various unauthorized charges made by Anthony.  

Two of Anthony’s victims addressed the court during the sentencing hearing and expressed the personal, emotional and physical strains they endured as a result of the theft of their identity.