West Haven Man Involved in E-Mail Phishing and Spamming Scheme Is Sentenced

Nora R. Dannehy, Acting United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that THOMAS TAYLOR, JR., 23, of West Haven, was sentenced today by United States District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford to four years of probation, the first seven months of which TAYLOR must serve in home confinement, for his involvement in a “phishing” and “spamming” scheme that targeted AOL subscribers. TAYLOR also must perform 200 hours of community service while on probation. On September 27, 2006, TAYLOR pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit fraud in connection with access devices and one count of aggravated identity theft.

According to documents filed with the Court and statements made in court, TAYLOR, Michael Dolan and others conspired to “harvest” email addresses of AOL subscribers from the Internet. The defendants then spammed thousands of AOL subscribers with counterfeit emails purporting, for example, to convey an electronic greeting card. If an AOL subscriber attempted to view the greeting card, the subscriber’s computer would be infected with a software trojan preventing the subscriber from accessing AOL without entering information including the subscriber’s name, address, Social Security account number, credit card number, bank account number, and personal identification number. The defendants used the information to produce counterfeit debit cards, which they used at ATM machines, online, and at retail outlets to obtain money, goods, and services.

Today, Judge Thompson ordered TAYLOR to pay to the victims of this scheme restitution in the amount of $33,714.

On August 13, 2008, Dolan was sentenced to 84 months of imprisonment.

This case was investigated by the West Haven Police Department, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the United States Secret Service, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Edward Chang.