Guy Robert Nalien of North Miami, Florida was accused of using stolen identities to claim unemployment benefits in a press release from the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida. Nalien, 26, was charged with aggravated identity theft, wire fraud, and mail fraud in the indictment. It is unclear whether he was arrested, and, if so, whether he qualified for bail bond. It is similarly unclear whether Nalien has hired a criminal defense lawyer.
The indictment says Nalien used stolen identity information to file fraudulent reports to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity Unemployment Compensation Program. Nalien allegedly claimed that each of the identities he assumed was unemployed and made it appear as though they were entitled to receive unemployment compensation benefits. The compensation program later sent the beneficiary funds to Nalien, who kept the money for his "own personal use," the indictment alleges.
"If convicted, Nalien faces a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each count of mail fraud and wire fraud, followed by three years of supervised release, a fine of up to $250,000 and restitution, and a consecutive two years in prison for each count of aggravated identity theft," the press release says. It is not clear how many victims may have been involved, nor does the press release indicate how much money Nalien was able to acquire through the purported fraud.
Wire fraud is one of the many types of fraud that cost South Florida dearly every year. Last month, Wellington resident George Louis Theodule was apprehended after he allegedly ran a fraudulent investment operation that nabbed around $60 million from unsuspecting investors, sources report. Theodule, 52, was taken into police custody on one count of securities fraud, three counts of money laundering, and 36 counts of wire fraud. It is unclear how his case is proceeding.
According to reports, Theodule was once the owner and operator of investment firms Creative Capital Consortium and Creative Capital Concepts. Theodule allegedly told possible investors that he had 17 year's worth of trading stocks. However, Theodule had no reported income between 2000 and 2007, sources indicate.