Source: Office of United States Attorneys
CORPUS CHRISTI – A 41-year-old Newark man has been ordered to federal prison for conspiracy to commit bank fraud and aggravated identify theft, announced U.S. Attorney Nicholas J. Ganjei.
Cory Scott Becker pleaded guilty Oct. 24, 2024.
U.S. District Judge David S. Morales has now imposed a 36-month-term of imprisonment for Becker. At the hearing, the court heard additional evidence of his and others’ roles and the scheme to steal funds.
Christopher Carr, 37, Corpus Christi, previously received 12 months and a day in prison, while Joseph Aguilar, 37, Corpus Christi, and Emmett Jimenez, 45, Yoakum, received 12 and 18 months, respectively.
The investigation began after a complainant reported $30,000 was taken out of her account at a credit union in Corpus Christi. The bank’s risk management team discovered that from Feb. 16, 2022, until approximately March 8, 2022, 44 unauthorized transactions occurred from approximately 18 accounts.
Law enforcement interviewed account owners and verified the unauthorized withdrawals. The investigation revealed they were made through an interactive teller machine which allows fund withdrawals using a holder’s Social Security and bank account numbers.
Authorities subsequently discovered Becker, Carr, Aguilar and Jimenez conspired to use the numbers and accounts to illegally withdraw funds from credit union account holders.
Becker was permitted to remain on bond pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future.
The FBI conducted the investigation with the assistance of the Corpus Christi Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Liesel Roscher prosecuted the case.