CO-OP CITY MAN SENTENCED TO UP TO 8 YEARS IMPRISONMENT FOR IDENTITY THEFT AND GRAND LARCENY

Bronx District Attorney Robert T. Johnson announced today that a Co-op City man, who victimized his neighbors, has been sentenced to a maximum term of up to 8 years imprisonment following his conviction on charges of identity theft and grand larceny.

Harold Charles, 38, of 170 Dreiser Loop, the Bronx, pled guilty earlier this year to one count of Identity Theft in the 1st degree, and one count of Grand Larceny in the 3rd degree. Both are Class “D” felony offenses. State Supreme Court Justice Steven Barrett sentenced Charles to serve consecutive terms of two to four years imprisonment on each count. Charles will not become eligible for parole until he has served at least four years of his sentence.

The defendant admitted that he had withdrawn $3,800 from one victim’s bank account without authorization and that he had fraudulently obtained a temporary credit card on a department store account that belonged to another victim. Charles admitted that he used the credit card during a two day shopping spree at the J. C. Penney Department Store at Bay Plaza in Co-op City where he purchased nearly $2,800 worth of jewelry, shoes, sneakers, and other items including a jumbo grill and a back massager. The defendant claimed to be the victim’s fiancé and was issued a temporary credit card on February 11, 2004 after producing the woman’s social security number and a photo ID in the name of yet another person. Charles began buying things immediately and returned to the store the following day to continue his shopping spree. The victim was alerted and notified store personnel when the unauthorized purchases showed up on her bill.

Charles also admitted that two months earlier, in December 2003, he went to at a Northfork Bank branch in Co-op City and fraudulently withdrew nearly $2,800 from the bank account of another victim. Charles was given the money after filling out withdrawal slips on December 12th , 13th, and 15th in the amounts of $500, $1,600 and $1,700. The theft was discovered when the victim went to the bank on December 19th to inquire about his account balance. Charles was arrested the next day on December 20, 2003 when he returned to the bank in an attempt to make another unauthorized withdrawal.

Investigators later recovered over one hundred pieces of mail in the defendant’s possession that was addressed to numerous residents of Co-op City. The mail contained bank, pension and credit card statements, as well as other personal identifying information. Investigators believe that Charles obtained the mail as a result of an informal ‘honor system’ that Co-op City residents used for mis-delivered mail.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Juan Soto of the Investigation Divisions’ Arson / Auto / Economic Crime Bureau.