“John Doe” Indicted and Arrested on Aggravated Identity Theft and Fraud Charges Involving JAXPORT

JACKSONVILLE, FL—U.S. Attorney Robert E. O’Neill announces the return of a multi-count indictment against John Doe, a/k/a Leroy Mayers, a/k/a Leroy Meyers, a/k/a L.T.H., charging him with aggravated identity theft, passport fraud, falsely representing a Social Security number, and fraud against the United States involving an identification document. “John Doe” was arrested on a federal warrant while in state custody for fraud charges. He had his initial appearance on October 25, 2011. After a detention hearing on October 29, 2011, the court ordered that John Doe be detained pending resolution of his charges. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of up to 31 years in federal prison with a mandatory minimum of six years in federal prison. As of yet, law enforcement has not affirmatively identified John Doe.

According to court documents presented at the detention hearing, John Doe assumed the identity of a living victim. Using the Social Security number of the victim, John Doe obtained numerous identification documents in the name of the victim to include a passport, military contractor identification cards, and Florida identification cards. He also used the personal identification information of the victim at JAXPORT to fraudulently obtain a Transportation Worker Identification Credentials (“TWIC”) badge issued by the Transportation Security Administration. The TWIC badge allowed John Doe to have unescorted access to secure areas of JAXPORT to include the Blount Island Marine Terminal.

The case was investigated by U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Services, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Florida Highway Patrol, Social Security Administration - Office of Inspector General, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations. It is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kevin C. Frein.

An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed a violation of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent until, and unless, proven guilty.