ID theft alleged in rent, credit card scam

Deslouis Edouard allegedly used a stolen identity to rent an Allentown apartment in April 2018 and lived there for six months without paying the rent, a federal indictment says.

When Edouard was evicted he did it again, and again, prosecutors allege.

In all, Edouard used other people’s personal information purchased from the dark web to lease four apartments around the Lehigh Valley and set up utilities between 2018 and this year, each time running up thousands of dollars in unpaid rent and bills, a federal indictment filed last week alleges.

But prosecutors allege Edouard of Philadelphia didn’t limit his spending in other people’s names to living expenses. The indictment alleges Edouard used stolen identities to purchase $32,000 Audi SUV, open dozens of wireless accounts to purchase iPhones and iPads, obtain credit cards to make purchases at stores and restaurants, buy gift cards and get cash advances from banks.

The indictment alleges he also had some of the credit cards delivered to Yahaira Diaz, a Pottsville woman who was sentenced last year to morethan five years in federal prison for a telephone scam targeting senior citizens.

Prosecutors say Edouard managed the alleged scheme by keeping a list of 480 stolen identities, credit card numbers associated with the names and how he had used them. They allege Edouard defrauded victims of $522,586.

Edouard is charged with two counts each of mail fraud and wire fraud, one count of credit card fraud, one count of possessing equipment to make counterfeit credit cards and four counts of aggravated identity theft, court records show.