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TJX Alleged Fence Sentenced To Five Years In Prison

Written by Evan Schuman
September 14th, 2007

One of the Miami residents charged with trying to sell stolen TJX credit card data has been sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay $600,000 in restitution, the Florida state Attorney General announced Thursday.

Irving Escobar and several others were charged with using counterfeit credit cards that they manufactured using the stolen data from the TJX breach. “Authorities believe Escobar and his codefendants acquired the stolen data and used it to re-code the counterfeit credit cards which were then used to purchase the gift cards,” according to a statement from the AG’s office.

?Having personally witnessed the devastation identity theft can cause on so many levels, I have pledged the full strength of my office to prosecute these criminal operations and shut them down so we can protect our citizens from this terrible form of victimization,? said Attorney General Bill McCollum.

Escobar pleaded guilty to charges of organized scheme to defraud in March. His codefendants have also pleaded guilty to similar charges involving organized fraud and grand theft. Codefendants Dianelly Hernandez, Julio Alberti, Reinier Alvarez and Zenia Llorente were all sentenced to probation in August. Escobar?s mother, Nair Alvarez, pleaded guilty in March and was deported to Venezuela, according to the statement.

Posted in IT Strategy/Industry, Security/Fraud
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