Richfield Resident Gets 4.5 Years for Role in Identity-Theft Ring

A Richfield resident is one of nearly three dozen people who will wind up being sentenced in a multi-state identity theft ring, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota.

On Thursday, Donyea Terrell Collins, 27, of Richfield, was sentenced to 55 months in prison after previously pleading to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.   

More than 100 people conspired between 2006 and December 2011 to defraud banks, bank customers and businesses using victim information to create counterfeit checks and identification documents. They then used those to buy expensive merchandise that they returned for cash and to withdraw money from victims’ bank accounts. 

The fraud took place throughout Minnesota and in at least 13 other states. The conspirators got victim information multiple ways—including by stealing information from their workplaces, from bank employees, from the mail, during vehicle break-ins and during business burglaries.

“Individuals who commit identity fraud of this magnitude deserve to be punished to the fullest extent of the law,” a release quoted Kelly R. Jackson, special agent in charge of IRS criminal investigations at the St. Paul Field Office, which also participated in the investigation. “These individuals caused immeasurable hardship to innocent victims. IRS Criminal Investigations remains committed to the pursuit of identity theft, and together with our law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, we will hold those who engage in similar behavior fully accountable.”

• Derek Charles Estelle, 25, of Stillwater, was sentenced to 30 months in prison.
• Kelly Jenelle Scott, 44, no known address, was sentenced to 46 months in prison.

The same day, Magnuson also sentenced Lee Vang, 32, of St. Paul, to 30 months in prison on one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and one count of aggravated identity theft.

Five co-conspirators were also sentenced on identical charges June 19. The following people were sentenced for on one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft:

• Melissa Jean Beaman, 37, of St. Louis Park, was sentenced to 24 months and one day in prison. She pleaded guilty in Jan. 9, 2012. 
• Christeena Janell Barker, 46, no known address, was sentenced to 48 months in prison. She pleaded guilty January 19, 2012.
• Brianna Marie Blegen, 26, of Ham Lake, was sentenced to 24 months in prison. She pleaded guilty June 6, 2012.
• Jacqueline Cleveland, 55, of Bloomington, was sentenced to 26 months in prison. She pleaded guilty April 11, 2012.
• Robin Dawn Finger, 44, of St. Paul, was sentenced to 34 months in prison. She pleaded guilty on June 21, 2012.

That same day Brianna Marie Darwin, 27, of St. Paul, was sentenced to 24 months in prison on one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and one count of aggravated identity theft. She pleaded guilty July 20, 2011.

There were also the following sentences June 20:

• Patricia Grace Pnewski, 52, of South St. Paul, was sentenced to time served on one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud. She pleaded guilty on February 6, 2012.
• Cynthia Andrea Maxwell, 45, of St. Paul, was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison on one count of conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering. She pleaded guilty on July 12, 2012.
• Vinicia Andrell Williamson, 28, of Minneapolis, was sentenced to 24 months in prison on one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. She pleaded guilty on August 1, 2012.

On June 14, 2013, four people were sentenced on one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft:

• Jamie Hubert Branson, 47, of Minneapolis, was sentenced to 43 months in prison. He pleaded guilty on January 19, 2012.
• Ginger Loucina Halliburton, 46, of St. Paul, was sentenced to 30 months in prison. She pleaded guilty on February 8, 2013.
• Majorie Marie Neely, 51, of Red Wing, was sentenced to 43 months in prison. She pleaded guilty on January 10, 2012.
• Darryl Alan Brant, 55, of St. Paul, was sentenced to 30 months in prison. He pleaded guilty on January 19, 2012.

And in a related case, four additional individuals—Jemall Ronta Williams, Jerome Davis, Jr., Tierra Samantha Catrina House and Shanell Collette Brewer—pleaded guilty. Gordon Lamarr Moore was convicted in April 2013 following a jury trial. He remains a fugitive.

The Minnesota Financial Crimes Task Force, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations investigated those cases, which were prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen B. Schommer and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michelle E. Jones.

“This investigation came together as a result of the partnerships between agencies and the extraordinary efforts of all involved,” Patrick Henry, the head of the Minnesota Financial Crimes Task Force, said after Thursday’s sentencing. “The Minnesota Financial Crimes Task Force led this investigation, but this is an example of successful collaboration of local, state, and federal criminal justice agencies.”