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Louisiana Man Pleads Guilty in Car Dealership Fraud Conspiracy
Friday, October 18, 2024
For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of Mississippi
Jackson, Mississippi – A Louisiana man pled guilty today to two counts of conspiring to commit wire fraud in connection with a scheme to use the stolen identity of others to purchase expensive vehicles in the Jackson, Mississippi metro area.
According to court documents and statements made in court, from approximately May 2023 through June 13, 2023, Paul Anthony Robinson, 33, of New Orleans, and his coconspirators, obtained the identity information of credit-worthy individuals, created false identity documents in the names of those individuals, then posed as those individuals at automotive dealerships in order to apply for vehicle financing. Robinson and his coconspirators filled out credit applications and purchased or attempted to purchase expensive vehicles from dealerships in the Jackson metro area. The conspirators fraudulently purchased two vehicles worth a total of more than $127,000 and had plans to fraudulently obtain more vehicles before law enforcement intervened.
Robinson is scheduled to be sentenced on February 19, 2025, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Robinson’s coconspirators, Sarah Elizabeth Calderon, Joshanique Elouise Bailey, David L. Jones, Jr., and Anna Waldei, are charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft. Their cases are still pending trial. If convicted, they face a mandatory minimum sentence of two years in prison and a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
U.S. Attorney Todd W. Gee of the Southern District of Mississippi, U.S. Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Patrick Davis, and Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch made the announcement.
The United States Secret Service and the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office are investigating the case through their partnership in the Cyber Fraud Task Force.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Kimberly T. Purdie is prosecuting the case.
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