Home Denver Press Releases 2010 Sheridan Woman Sentenced to Federal Prison for Fraudulent Wal-Mart Shopping Card Scheme
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Sheridan Woman Sentenced to Federal Prison for Fraudulent Wal-Mart Shopping Card Scheme

U.S. Attorney’s Office September 07, 2010
  • District of Colorado (303) 454-0100

DENVER—Jerryca P. Chavez (aka Jerryca Baros and Misty Hetzel), age 26, of Englewood and Sheridan, Colorado, was sentenced this morning by U.S. District Court Judge Christine M. Arguello to serve 60 months in federal prison for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, United States Attorney John Walsh, U.S. Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Daniel Donahue, and FBI Special Agent in Charge James Davis announced. Judge Arguello also ordered Chavez to pay restitution totaling $194,879.69 to Walmart and 19 other financial institutions, all of which were the victims of the wire fraud crime. Chavez, who appeared at the sentencing free on bond, was ordered to report to a Bureau of Prisons facility within 15 days of designation.

Jerryca P. Chavez was indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver on January 27, 2010. She pled guilty before Judge Arguello on April 22, 2010. Chavez was sentenced today, September 7, 2010.

According to the indictment and subsequent plea agreement, between October 2004 and September 2007, Chavez knowingly devised a scheme to defraud and obtain money and property from various Wal-Mart stores and credit card companies by means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses.

During the time period in question, Chavez worked at a Greenwood Village business. While working at that business she had access to customers’ credit card information, which she fraudulently obtained. She also obtained others credit card information through other unknown means. As part of the scheme, Chavez obtained numerous Wal-Mart shopping cards. She would then call both in and out of state Wal-Mart stores. She would provide a compelling story to the Wal-Mart employee stating she was in the military in a war zone and needed the gift card loaded to feed her children. She would often use the manager’s name at Wal-Mart to convince the employee to fund a Wal-Mart shopping card over the phone with a credit card, which is contrary to standard practice.

Chavez used the credit card numbers during the scheme without cardholders’ authorization to fund Wal-Mart shopping cards by providing the credit card number to a Wal-Mart employee during the conversation. The defendant would request the shopping card be funded using an unauthorized credit card number in varying amounts between $350 and $800. Chavez would then use the Wal-Mart shopping cards, funded with the fraudulently obtained credit card numbers, in various Wal-Mart stores throughout the greater Metro Denver area to purchase groceries, electronics, household items, and large ticket merchandise. The defendant and an un-named associate kept the smaller purchases and returned larger priced items to Wal-Mart to obtain cash. Chavez fraudulently obtained over $200,000 in Wal-Mart merchandise and cash by implementing this scheme.

“Prosecuting financial fraud a top priority of the Justice Department and of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado,” said U.S. Attorney John Walsh. “The integrity of our modern financial system depends on vigilant enforcement and prosecution of financial fraud schemes at every level.”

“The type of financial fraud that the defendant committed and was sentenced for today not only has a negative impact on the business community, but also has a damaging effect on the public as well,” said U.S. Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Daniel Donahue. “The U.S. Secret Service will continue to aggressively investigate this type of financial crimes.”

“The collaborative effort between the United States Secret Service and the FBI is a good example of the on-going working relationship federal investigative agencies have in order to combat all manners of federal violations,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge James Davis. “This investigation highlights the leveraging of federal law enforcement resources to protect the economic interests of U.S. citizens.”

This case was investigated by the United States Secret Service (USSS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Chavez was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Linda McMahan.

This prosecution is part of President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch, and with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.

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