Las Vegas Man Pleads Guilty to Corporate-Identity Theft Scheme

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – Myrick Clift Beasley, 56, of Las Vegas, pleaded guilty today to mail fraud charges in connection with a scheme to obtain goods and services on credit using the stolen identities of legitimate, inactive businesses.

In a statement of facts filed with his plea agreement, Beasley admitted that from 2010 through 2015, he assumed the identity of at least 70 legitimate businesses nationwide, and used those stolen identities to obtain, on credit, at least $550,000 in goods and services from various victims.  Beasley admitted that, as part of the scheme, he would identify inactive, legitimate businesses that had previously been located in office buildings where virtual office providers were also located.  Beasley admitted that we would assume the inactive businesses’ identities by renting virtual office space in the buildings in the names of the legitimate businesses, creating internet domain names and email addresses in the identified businesses’ names, obtaining phone numbers previously identified with the businesses when available, and, at times, supplementing state corporate filings and commercial credit records with fraudulent information designed to further the scheme.  Beasley admitted that he concealed his true identity throughout the fraud by using false names and paying for the costs of operating his scheme with prepaid debit cards.  Once he would assume a business’s identity, Beasley admitted that he would then order goods and services — particularly, smart phones, computers, and other electronics — from retailers on credit and have the items shipped to the virtual office location, which would then, at his direction, re-ship the items to rented mailboxes elsewhere in the country.  Beasley admitted he would then retrieve the items from the rented mailboxes and sell them.

Beasley was indicted by a federal grand jury on Dec. 17, 2015.  Beasley faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison when sentenced on April 29, 2016.  The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Dana J. Boente, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Paul M. Abbate, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office; and Edwin C. Roessler Jr., Chief of the Fairfax County Police Department, made the announcement after the plea was accepted by U.S. District Judge T.S. Ellis, III.  Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher R. Fenton and Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul J. Nathanson are prosecuting the case.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.  Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 1:15-CR-353.