date: Wed, 15 Nov 2006 21:23:28 -0400 x-mimeole: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.2962 from: subject: Federal Bureau of Investigation - St Louis Field Division Press Release - Department of Justice - March 14, 2006 content-type: multipart/related; type="text/html"; boundary="----=_NextPart_000_0000_01C708FC.4ADE9370" mime-version: 1.0 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0000_01C708FC.4ADE9370 content-type: text/html; charset="iso-8859-1" content-transfer-encoding: quoted-printable content-location: http://stlouis.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/pressre06/identitytheft031406.htm Federal Bureau of = Investigation - St Louis Field Division Press Release - Department of Just= ice - March 14, 2006

UNITED STATES ATTORNEY= 'S=20 OFFICE EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI CATHERINE L. HANAWAY Uni= ted States=20 Attorney	NEWS= =20 RELEASE
*For further information: Call Public Aff= airs=20 Officer Jan Diltz at (314) 539-7719*
March 14, 2006 For Immediat= e Release=20

A DENTAL OFFICE EMPLOYEE, HER MOTHE= R, SISTER=20 AND FAMILY FRIEND PLEAD GUILTY TO IDENTITY THEFT CHARGES

St. Louis, Missouri: Tamiko Blount, = her mother=20 Sheila, sister Erica and a family friend pled guilty to identity fra= ud=20 charges in a scheme to use stolen identities to open credit accounts= and=20 purchase merchandise, United States Attorney Catherine Hanaway annou= nced=20 today. Some of the information recovered during four separate search= =20 warrants came from patient records obtained through Tamiko Blount= 217;s=20 employment at a St. Louis area dental office.

The entire scheme resulted in losses= exceeding=20 $70,000 as a result of more than 252 fraudulent credit applications.= =20

"This scheme affected more than 67=20 individuals, who unknowingly had their personal information stolen,"= said=20 Hanaway. "Their lives will never be the same due to the greed of thi= s=20 woman."

Between August 2004 and November 15,= 2005,=20 Tamiko Blount was employed by a dentist in the City of St. Louis. Th= rough=20 her employment she had access to patient information, including name= s,=20 addresses, social security numbers and dates of birth. In May 2005, = Tamiko=20 gave this information to her mother, Sheila. The evidence is inconcl= usive=20 as to whether identities stolen from the dental office were used to= =20 fraudulently obtain credit and merchandise. Sheila Blount also recei= ved=20 information from other individuals which she used to open credit acc= ounts=20 and obtain merchandise and gift cards over the internet.

In addition to sharing the credit ac= counts,=20 merchandise, and gift cards with her daughters, Mary Pittman, and an= other=20 individual, Sheila Blount also shared identifying information with h= er=20 daughters. Sheila Blount, Erica Blount, and Tamiko Blount used the=20 identifying information of others in order to obtain utility service= from=20 Laclede Gas and Ameren UE for their three residences.

SHEILA BLOUNT, 47, of the 5000 block= of North=20 Kingshighway, St. Louis, pled guilty today to aggravated identity th= eft,=20 conspiracy to commit fraud, mail fraud, and possession of more than = 15=20 access devices. The possession of access devices stemmed from the=20 discovery of 180 social security account numbers and 89 credit accou= nt=20 numbers in her home during a search warrant conducted in May, 2005. = ERICA=20 BLOUNT, 28, of the 4400 block of Redbud, St. Louis, pled guilty toda= y to=20 conspiracy to commit fraud and aggravated identity theft. Sentencing= for=20 both defendants has been set for Friday, June 16, 2006.

TAMIKO BLOUNT, 30, of the 2600 block= of=20 Arkansas, St. Louis; and MARY PITTMAN, 43, of the 4400 block of Alas= ka,=20 St. Louis, pled guilty to related charges in February. All defendant= s=20 appeared before United States District Judge Catherine D. Perry.=20 Sentencing has been set for these two defendants for Friday, May 16,= =20 2006.

These charges carry a penalty range = of two to=20 15 years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000 per count.

Hanaway commended the work done on t= his case=20 by the Identity Theft Task Force, the St. Louis City Police Departme= nt,=20 the Postal Inspection Service, the Social Security Administration-Of= fice=20 of Inspector General-Office of Investigation, the St. Louis County P= olice=20 Department, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States S= ecret=20 Service, and Assistant United States Attorney Tracy Berry, who is ha= ndling=20 the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

St. Louis Home=20 Page

St. Louis Press=20 Releases

------=_NextPart_000_0000_01C708FC.4ADE9370 content-type: application/octet-stream content-transfer-encoding: base64 content-location: http://209.235.0.153/njs.gif?dcsuri=/nojavascript&WT.js=No R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAP8A/wAAACH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAICRAEAOw== ------=_NextPart_000_0000_01C708FC.4ADE9370--