Former Police Officer, Wife Indicted for Identity Theft Conspiracy

KANSAS CITY, MO—Matt J. Whitworth, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a former officer for the University of Central Missouri Police Department and his wife were indicted by a federal grand jury today for their roles in an identity theft conspiracy.

James B. Drake, 45, and Amanda J. Drake, 29, both of Warrensburg, Mo., were charged in an indictment that was returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Kansas City on Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009. That indictment was unsealed and made public today upon the Drakes arrest and initial court appearances.

The federal indictment alleges that, beginning in May 2009, the Drakes conspired to illegally possess and use the identity information—including names, Social Security numbers and dates of birth—contained on a University of Central Missouri student enrollment list. According to the indictment, that identification was used to commit credit card fraud.

Whitworth cautioned that the charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney William L. Meiners. It was investigated by the University of Central Missouri Police Department in conjunction with the Federal Bureau of Investigation.