Hammond Man Sentenced To Prison

HAMMOND – Devon Gibson, age 24, of Hammond, Indiana was sentenced by United States District Court Judge Philip P. Simon upon his plea of guilty to a bank fraud scheme in which he forged checks, deposited them at area ATMs, and withdrew funds, announced U.S. Attorney Kirsch.

Mr. Gibson was sentenced to 48 months in prison.  The sentence includes a two-year mandatory minimum sentence for aggravated identity theft. 

“We appreciate the work of the FBI and Hammond Police Department in resolving this case,” said U.S. Attorney Thomas L. Kirsch.  “These types of crimes are not victimless and our law enforcement partners will continue to investigate, and we will prosecute offenses like this one.”

According to documents in this case on March 3, 2020, Gibson pled guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft.  Gibson’s bank fraud scheme spanned 18 months.  During that time, he created forged checks, deposited them, and withdrew as much money as the bank allowed.  He recruited others to provide him with bank accounts that he could use to deposit fraudulent checks or with identity information of unknowing persons that Gibson could use to open bank accounts.  Investigators were able to identify 200 fraudulent checks and over three dozen bank accounts linked to the scheme.

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation GRIT Task Force and the Hammond Police Department.  It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexandra McTague. 

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