An Atlanta man, Jeremiah Carbon, has received a federal prison sentence for executing a money order fraud scheme and illegally possessing a firearm, confirmed the U.S. Attorney's office. Information released by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia states that Carbon was involved in fraudulently depositing approximately $1.5 million through almost 1,500 money orders into various metro Atlanta bank accounts between December 2019 and September 2022, using false identities and driver's licenses, many belonging to real individuals.
Despite previous convictions, Carbon possessed a firearm, leading to additional charges against him for being a felon in possession of a gun, he was caught in possession of a number of blank money orders and a firearm during a traffic stop by the Gwinnett County Sheriff's Office—this incident piled onto the banking fraud bringing the law down on Carbon, compounding his legal troubles. He eventually pled guilty to charges of bank fraud conspiracy, bank fraud, and the firearm offense on June 6, with U.S District Judge Victoria M. Calvert handing down a sentence of three years and five months, followed by three years supervised release.
"Carbon took advantage of a monetary instrument intended to serve as a secure means for transferring funds and used it for his personal gain," U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan stated in the press release.
Caught on camera, Carbon was recorded buying and returning the money orders; moreover, in some instances he made additional purchases at the stores using a legitimate debit card, which linked him to the fraudulent transactions, the scheme was brought to an end by the combined forces of the U.S. Secret Service and other law enforcement partners, with Special Agent in Charge Frederick D. Houston highlighting their adaptive methods to uncover such financial schemes Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bethany L. Rupert and Alison Prout led the prosecution of this case.
Queries for any additional information regarding the case can be directed to the U.S. Attorney's Public Affairs Office at [email protected] or by calling (404) 581-6016.
