ID theft ring targeted Dobbins servicemen

By Alyse Knorr

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Four of the five suspects in a 20-victim DeKalb County identity theft case are related, a detective said Friday.

DeKalb County Police have arrested two women and secured warrants for three others who took part in an organized identity theft ring that stole more than $50,000 from members of the U.S. Air Force.

The five suspects include a mother, her two daughters, a cousin and a neighbor, said DeKalb Det. Angel S. Lewis.

Detectives believe that in 2007, the suspects gained access to the secured alpha member roster of the 80th Aerial Port Squadron based out of Dobbins Air Force Base, said DeKalb Police spokeswoman Mekka Parish. Since that time, over 20 airmen in this unit have fallen victim to identify theft.

The suspects used personal information from the roster such as dates of births, addresses and social security numbers to open online bank accounts, each opened at different times. The suspects then made false deposits to these accounts and overdrew large sums of money.

Detectives arrested Kenyatta Willis on July 29 and 28-year-old Stacey Walker on July 15. Warrants are out for 54-year-old Dianne Walker and 27-year-old Ebony Walker. A warrant is pending for Taneshia Walker.

Officials are still investigating how the suspects obtained the list, and they think more people may have been involved.

“It’s likely that others were involved,” Lewis said. “It’s a possibility we may make other arrests.”

The five suspects live in the unincorporated area of DeKalb and face charges of financial identity fraud.

Detectives believe the fraudulent accounts were opened at Washington Mutual locations in DeKalb, Fulton, Douglas and Cobb counties.

More than $50,000 is estimated to have been taken.

Washington Mutual is in the process of refunding the money and a request has been referred to the credit bureau to put a credit fraud alerts on the victims’ credit files, Lewis said.

The investigation started at the Air Force Office of Special Investigations at Dobbins in 2007, when officials realized several servicemen and women from the same squadron had fallen victim to identity theft.

“They thought it was kind of odd, so they started the investigation,” Lewis said.

The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department became involved after one of its officers who used to be in the 80th Aerial was notified his identity had been stolen. The FBI also became involved because the crime involved military personnel.

The big break in the case came when officials were able to obtain from Washington Mutual the names, dates of births and addresses of the individuals who created the fraudulent accounts, Lewis said. After that step, it was possible to make arrests.

The DeKalb County Police Department was brought into the case in 2009, when the suspects’ addresses were uncovered and found to be in DeKalb’s jurisdiction.

The 80th Aerial Port Squadron is made up of several entities, including joint inspection, air terminal, passenger services, ramp, cargo, fleet services and load planning sections and an operation center, according to Senior Master Sgt. Sandra Wright.

These sections together provide aerial support of air-land operations in high threat areas, deliver cargo and operate unit moves, according to Master Sgt. Angelita Colon-Francia.

In 2005, 88 members of the squadron spent nearly a year on active duty working in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, according to Colon-Francia.

The alpha roster the suspects used was from several years before the investigation started in 2007, making it difficult for officials to determine who from the squadron has been deployed in the past.

If anyone has information in this case, they are asked to call the DeKalb County Police Department’s Fraud Unit at (770) 724-7700.