Jay Clayton, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, along with Edward Gallashaw, the Acting Inspector in Charge of the New York Division of the United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), has announced charges against Micheal Pena, Harrington Delahoz, Joshua Gutierrez, and Jaysen Dorsey. The four individuals face accusations of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, along with aggravated identity theft. Pena and Gutierrez were apprehended this morning. Gutierrez is to be presented before U.S. Magistrate Judge Barbara Moses, while Pena will appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Daniel C. Irick in Florida. Delahoz and Dorsey are currently at large.
“As alleged, Micheal Pena and his co-defendants orchestrated a massive, multimillion-dollar scheme to steal innocent victims’ money. The defendants obtained real checks, including from the mail, forged the checks, falsified identities, sold the checks to others, and took advantage of multiple financial institutions. The defendants’ fraudulent scheme affected real people and the millions of Americans who rely on the United States banking system and the United States mail,” stated U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton.
Edward Gallashaw, the Acting Inspector in Charge of USPIS, remarked, “These individuals allegedly devised a scheme to steal checks from the U.S. Mail and then, in some cases, sell the personal identifiable information on these stolen checks via an encrypted messaging platform to colluding individuals. They furthered their scheme by altering the payee and amount originally written on these checks, stealing from the unsuspecting public.”
The complaint alleges that between April 2023 and October 2024, the defendants engaged in a nationwide scheme selling over $53 million in stolen checks. These stolen checks were fraudulently altered and deposited at various financial institutions. Pena reportedly used a messaging platform named “White House Vibez” to sell stolen checks, subsequently directing purchasers to send payments via a mobile payment platform, with fake identification accounts allegedly set up by Gutierrez and Delahoz.
Pena, Delahoz, Gutierrez, and Dorsey are charged jointly with bank fraud and wire fraud conspiracy, which could result in a maximum of 30 years in prison and aggravated identity theft with a minimum sentence of two years. Any sentencing will be determined by the presiding judge.
“This case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorney Varun A. Gumaste is in charge of the prosecution,” noted U.S. Attorney Clayton, acknowledging the USPIS for their investigation efforts.
The charges in the complaint are accusations, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.